The unrivalled holdings of the University of Glasgow are founded on the major gifts and bequest of Whistler’s sister-in-law and heir, Rosalind Birnie Philip. These outstanding resources, housed in the Hunterian Art Gallery and the University of Glasgow Library, have provided the basis for internationally-recognised exhibitions, displays, research, learning and teaching through History of Art. The University of Glasgow has been a leader in the development of on-line research resources for Whistler studies. Recent major projects include the publication of the on-line correspondence of Whistler, completed in 2010, and the on-line catalogue raisonné of his etchings, which went live in 2012. Holdings include over 800 works of art by Whistler, more than a 1,000 books on Whistler, and 200 volumes from his own personal library, in addition to a comprehensive collection of his exhibition catalogues and press cuttings.
Whistler Etchings Project
http://etchings.arts.gla.ac.uk/
The Correspondence of James McNeill Whistler
http://www.whistler.arts.gla.ac.uk/correspondence
Whistler Paintings Project
This project led by Professor Margaret MacDonald, and Dr Grischka Petri, University of Bonn, has been funded by the Chancellor’s Fund, University of Glasgow, The Leverhulme Trust, the Lunder Foundation and others. It will result in a fully illustrated, annotated online catalogue raisonné of Whistler’s 500 oil paintings. This will include previously unrecorded or unlocated works, digital images of all known works and comparative material, updated records of provenance, documentation and bibliography, and surveys of exhibitions and reviews. Technical analysis will extend knowledge of Whistler’s production methods. The development of compositions, from drawing, to preliminary sketch, to finished product, including early photographs of works, will aid visual analysis. It will be possible to view all the works shown in an exhibition, or owned by a collector, or portraits of a particular sitter. Some works, previously attributed to Whistler, will be re-evaluated, and some re-attributed. An online catalogue raisonné of the works on paper will follow, in similar format, with many previously unrecorded works, and comprehensive information and images of Whistler’s sketchbooks.
James McNeill Whistler and his Art
A blog, initiated by Professor Margaret MacDonald in 2013, explores subjects, exhibitions, news and reviews of Whistler’s work in all media, in the context of 19th-21st century art and artists. It provides an opportunity to present and discuss new approaches to Whistler and his art.
http://jmcnwhistler.wordpress.com
Writing Whistler
Led by Dr Patricia de Montfort, University of Glasgow and Dr Grischka Petri, University of Bonn, this project will present online selected Whistler writings, centring on a critical edition of Whistler’s The Gentle Art of Making Enemies, first published in 1890.
Whistler & Watercolour
This initiative, led by Dr Patricia de Montfort, University of Glasgow, uses art historical research and technical analysis to investigate the materials and context of Whistler’s watercolours held in major public collections.
http://www.whistlerwatercolours.gla.ac.uk
Louise Jopling
Whistler’s friend and contemporary, Louise Jopling (1843–1933) was a leading woman artist and teacher in Victorian London. This research project, led by Dr Patricia de Montfort, aims to document Jopling’s career and investigate the context within which women artists practised in the 19th century.
http://www.louisejopling.arts.gla.ac.uk
Exhibition Culture in London 1878 – 1908
This project, led by Dr Patricia de Montfort, University of Glasgow, documents the history of exhibitions in late 19th-century London, including many exhibitions related to Whistler and his circle. It will portray the world of commercial art dealers, artist-led exhibition societies and clubs by recording the vast spectrum of art displays available to the Victorian gallery visitor.
http://www.exhibitionculture.arts.gla.ac.uk
