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An etching of a man and woman reading books at a round cloth covered table which holds a lamp. …
The Music Room
An etching of a man and woman reading books at a round cloth covered table which holds a lamp. …
An etching of a man and woman reading books at a round cloth covered table which holds a lamp. At left, a seated man is reading a paper in front of a window.
The Music Room, James McNeill Whistler, 1858, etching on paper, Telfair Museum of Art, Savannah, Georgia.

The Music Room

Artist (American, 1834 - 1903)
Date1858
Mediumetching on paper
DimensionsPlate: 5 3/4 × 8 1/2 inches (14.6 × 21.6 cm)
Sheet: 7 1/4 × 9 1/2 inches (18.4 × 24.1 cm)
Framed: 12 7/8 × 15 5/8 × 5/8 inches (32.7 × 39.7 × 1.6 cm)
Credit LineGift of the family of Mrs. Elizabeth Millar Bullard.
Object number1942.8
On View
Not on view
CopyrightThe images and text contained on this page are owned by Telfair Museums or used by the Museum with permission from the owners. Unauthorized reproduction, transmission or display of these materials is prohibited with the exception of items deemed “fair use” as defined by U.S. and international copyright laws.Label TextThis early etching portrays Whistler’s extended family—his brother-in-law Seymour Haden reading a newspaper on the left; Haden’s medical partner, James Traer, studying at the table; and Whistler’s step-sister, Deborah Haden, poring over a thin volume on the right. The bold contrasts of light and dark in this work successfully convey the impression of a darkened room illuminated by the light of a single lamp, which casts a glare over one side of the room. Whistler pulled several proofs of The Music Room, experimenting with different types of paper and amounts of surface ink. He preferred the darker prints such as this one.
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