Dipping the Flag
Classification
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Accession Number
F1888.5
Tags
About this artwork
Whistler etchings are identified by "G" numbers as assigned in "James McNeill Whistler: The Etchings, a catalogue raisonne," by Margaret F. McDonald, Grischka Petri, Meg Hausberg, and Joanna Meacock (University of Glasgow, 2012), http://etchings.arts.gla.ac.uk. This print is G308 state 3 of 4.
Art Historical Context
James McNeill Whistler created "Dipping the Flag" in 1887 during the height of his career as a master printmaker. An American expatriate working primarily in London, Whistler produced hundreds of etchings that elevated the medium from mere reproduction to fine art. This impression, identified as G308 state 3 of 4 in the definitive catalogue raisonné, belongs to his later period when he favored spare, atmospheric compositions over elaborate detail. The print depicts a maritime subject centered on a boat, rendered through the delicate lines and tonal gradations possible only in etching. Whistle...