Coast Survey (K 1)

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Coast Survey (K 1)

Artist James Abbott McNeill Whistler (American, 1834-1903)

Date1855

Dimensions5 7/8 × 10 1/4 in. (14.9 × 26 cm)

Mediumetching

ClassificationPrints

Object number

1912.1206

Not on View

Label TextWhistler was first exposed to the artistic science of etching during a short period of employment in the United States Coast Survey Office. As the name implies, the Coast Survey Office was charged with making a detailed study of the U. S. coastline. This print shows Whistler’s earliest efforts. The plate was intended as practice, so the sketched portraits in the upper corners are not as frivolous as they might be. Even though he was dismissed before graduation, Whistler had some experience with map-making through his training at West Point.Exhibition HistoryTMA, Whistler: Influences, Friends, and the Not-So-Friendly, Feb. 26 - May 30, 2010.