Little Arthur

James McNeill Whistler American
 Sitter Arthur Charles Haden British

Not on view

Early in 1858, Whistler went to London from Paris to recuperate from a bad fall and stayed with his sister Deborah and her husband Seymour Haden. A gifted etcher, the latter encouraged the artist’s first serious efforts in the medium. This moody image of the artist's nephew emphasizes dramatic lighting over portraiture and echoes Rembrandt whose works were collected by Haden. In November 1858, Whistler included the print in his first published set, "Douze eau-fortes d'apres Nature" ("Twelve Etchings from Nature"), known as the "French Set."

Little Arthur, James McNeill Whistler (American, Lowell, Massachusetts 1834–1903 London), Etching, printed in black ink on off-white chine mounted on off-white wove paper; fourth state of four (Glasgow)

Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Open Access

As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.

API

Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.

Little Arthur, James McNeill Whistler (American, Lowell, Massachusetts 1834–1903 London), Etching, printed in black ink on off-white chine mounted on off-white wove paper; fourth state of four (Glasgow)
Little Arthur, James McNeill Whistler (American, Lowell, Massachusetts 1834–1903 London), Etching, printed in black ink on off-white chine mounted on off-white wove paper; fourth state of four (Glasgow)

This artwork is meant to be viewed from right to left. Scroll left to view more.