Accession Number
2001/2.136

Title
Drury Lane, from the Twenty-Six Etchings (Second Venice Set)

Artist(s)
James Abbott McNeill Whistler

Artist Nationality
American (North American)

Object Creation Date
1880-1881

Medium & Support
etching printed in dark brown ink on laid paper

Dimensions
6 11/16 in x 3 15/16 in (17 cm x 10 cm);6 11/16 in x 3 15/16 in (17 cm x 10 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Nesta R. Spink

Label copy
Drury Lane, from Twenty-six Etchings, or the
Second Venice Set
1880–81
Etching
Only state (Kennedy 237)
Gift of Nesta R. Spink, 2001/2.136
Drury Lane is one of a handful of London views chosen to round out the Second Venice Set. The composition reflects Whistler’s preference for partial depiction of a scene, and the spatial construction—a dark passageway with a view beyond—is reminiscent of Venetian etchings such as The Beggars. At the same time, the frames-within-frames view through a passageway to the street echoes The Lime-Burner from the Thames Set.

; Label copy
James McNeill Whistler
United States, 1834–1903
Drury Lane, from the Twenty-Six Etchings
(Second Venice Set)
1880–81
Etching printed in dark brown ink on laid paper
Gift of Nesta R. Spink, 2001/2.136

Subject matter
Included in the "Second Venice Set", although a view of London, this image continues the theme explored in Whistler's Venetian etchings (executed 1879-80): playing with the notion of multiple views framed by doors, passages, etc. In many ways, this work is an extension of "The Beggars", an etching done in Venice showing figures situated before, in, and through the framing device of a covered passageway.

Physical Description
Five children (some only partially rendered) stand before a covered passageway of a building with the lower part of a second story window visible. Through the passageway in the midle distance can be seen a street corner with a woman on the sidewalk, and beyond that additional shops with men on the sidewalk. At the upper right is a flower-like form that is the artist's "butterfly" signature.

Primary Object Classification
Print

Collection Area
Western

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.

Keywords
alleys (streets)
figures (representations)
windows