Jo’s Bent Head

Description

Jo’s Bent Head
1861
Etching and drypoint
Second state of two(a) (Kennedy 78)
Bequest of Margaret Watson Parker, 1954/1.348
Jo’s Bent Head
1861
Etching and drypoint
State two(a) of two(a) (Kennedy 78)
Bequest of Margaret Watson Parker, 1954/1.350
Often the differences we encounter in impressions of Whistler’s prints are due to the progression of the line work in different states, where additional lines (or the removal of lines or even of whole figures) creates a change in the composition itself. That is not the case here: these are two impressions of the same state. The differences are in the papers used, the color of the ink, and the way the artist has applied the ink. Even in this early work, Whistler was already experimenting with how the application of ink to a plate could vary the effect of the final image. The impression that is cleanly wiped and printed in black ink leaves the focus solely on the delicate rendering and rich drypoint of the head of Whistler’s mistress and muse, Joanna Hiffernan, whose seated form is indicated by a handful of faint lines. The other impression is quite different in effect: Whistler opted for brown ink and during printing left films of ink in the margins of the plate outside the delineations of Jo’s skirt and back. The effect is warmer, richer, and more atmospheric, and the surrounding ink conveys more the sense of the mass of the model’s body. Collector Margaret Watson Parker acquired three impressions from this plate—a great testament to her discerning eye for the subtleties of Whistler’s prints.