James McNeill Whistler

Weary

Date 1863
Materials Drypoint: black ink on thin antique laid paper
Dimensions 19.6 cm x 13.1 cm
Marks Signed and dated on the plate: "Whistler 63"; signed in the tab with a butterfly
Further information GLAHA 54093.
Edward G. Kennedy, The Etched Work of Whistler, New York, The Grolier Club, 1910 (92).

Note The sitter for this portrait was Joanna (“Jo”) Hiffernan, Whistler's model and mistress in the early 1860s. Whistler’s family disapproved of her because she was unmarried and an artist’s model. She was known for her fiery temper. In this etching she is seen in a casual pose, relaxing in a chair with her thick red hair spread out sensually behind her. It is very similar to the erotic drawings by Whistler’s friend Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s of his model and mistress. The suggestion is of an intimate evening scene by the fireside. Jo is dressed informally: she does not seem to be wearing a corset. The burr of the drypoint lines gives the work a softness and delicacy appropriate to the subject. The antique paper that Whistler used absorbs the ink beautifully and adds to the softness and delicacy of the print.

Related works GLAHA 50283.