Etchings Institutions search term: freer gallery
Booth, Market Place, Loches |  Art Institute of Chicago (1917.587) | |
| Number: | 425 | |
| Date: | 1888 | |
| Medium: | etching | |
| Size: | 80 x 148 mm | |
| Signed: | butterfly at upper left | |
| Inscribed: | no | |
| Set/Publication: | no | |
| No. of States: | 1 | |
| Known impressions: | 2 | |
| Catalogues: | K.388; M.390 | |
| Impressions taken from this plate (2) | ||
KEYWORD
awning, cart, children, drink, market, people, shop, sign, stall, town.
TITLE
There are several market scenes of this date, and therefore several possible variations of the title. The two main versions, with variable punctuation, are as follows:
'Booth, Market Place Loches' (1887/1888, Whistler). 1
'Booth Market Place Loches' (1890/1891, Whistler). 2
'Booth - Market Place Loches' (1890/1892, Beatrice Whistler (1857-1896)). 3
'Booth, (Market)' (1897, Edward Guthrie Kennedy (1849-1932)). 4
'Booth Market, Loches' (1903/1935, possibly Rosalind Birnie Philip (1873-1958)). 5
'Market-Place, Loches' (1909, Edward Guthrie Kennedy (1849-1932)). 6
Whistler's original title, with added punctuation, 'Booth, Market Place, Loches' has been selected to avoid the possibility of confusion with Booth at a Fair [257], Market Women: Turkeys [424], Market Women, Loches [423], and other markets etched in 1888.
'Booth, Market Place Loches' (1887/1888, Whistler). 1
'Booth Market Place Loches' (1890/1891, Whistler). 2
'Booth - Market Place Loches' (1890/1892, Beatrice Whistler (1857-1896)). 3
'Booth, (Market)' (1897, Edward Guthrie Kennedy (1849-1932)). 4
'Booth Market, Loches' (1903/1935, possibly Rosalind Birnie Philip (1873-1958)). 5
'Market-Place, Loches' (1909, Edward Guthrie Kennedy (1849-1932)). 6
Whistler's original title, with added punctuation, 'Booth, Market Place, Loches' has been selected to avoid the possibility of confusion with Booth at a Fair [257], Market Women: Turkeys [424], Market Women, Loches [423], and other markets etched in 1888.
1: List, [1887/1888], GUW #13233.
2: List, [1890/1891], GUW #13236.
3: List, [1890/1892], GUW #12715.
4: Kennedy to Whistler, 24 September 1897, GUW #07287.
5: Envelope containing copper plate, Hunterian Art Gallery.
6: Kennedy 1902 (cat. no. 339).
DESCRIPTION
A market-cart, shaded by an awning, stands at the edge of an open space. Behind it are buildings and, to right, an archway. In front of the cart stand five women and a child, seen from the back. At far right a shopper with a basket looks down at a market woman with goods displayed on a box. In the foreground at left, another woman sits in front of several baskets full of goods for sale. Above the awning, on the building behind the cart, is an indistinct sign that reads 'BYRRH'.
SITE
The town of Loches, Touraine, on the river Loire in France.
DISCUSSION
The sign reading 'BYRRH' is an advert for an apéritif that was created in 1886. It was a blend of red wine, quinine or tonic water, and spices, flavoured with quinquina. It was developed by the brothers Pallade and Violet Simon, itinerant drapers, in the Languedoc-Roussillon region. It was first marketed as a health drink, a 'vin tonique', supposedly healthier than drinks like absinthe, and was sold in pharmacies. It became very popular as an apéritif in France. In 1977 the firm was acquired by Pernod-Ricard.