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426

3--GEORGE R. SWAIN, Esq.

No. 8: I have always felt that the small paintings by Mr. Whistler give a more perfect photograph when the plate approximates as nearly as possible to the size of the original picture, and your negative of this proof will, I think, be satisfactory if you will make your prints a little darker. I think the contrasts of the high lights in the proof received a little too pronounced; perhaps, a considerably darker print would be better. Please make six experimental prints, varying the high and low lights as much as you can in the printing. 

No. 9--a: The light in 9--a is altogether too bright, and the blacks too muddy. The marvelous atmosphere of the original is entirely lost, so I think the plate of 9--a should be abandoned.

No. 9--b is much finer in tone, giving more satisfactorily the night effect, but the blurring at both ends gives a muddy effect and the points of light in the foreground should be eliminated. You see, this is a night scene and in the original the light throughout the picture is almost evenly seen. When you are next here, I will show you a reproduction of this painting made in London in 1893, which seems to me far superior to your negative. There was something wrong with this attempt but I cannot (I regret to say) tell what it is. I wish you would reduce the points of light and send me two prints of 9--b. 

No 10--a: The light in 10--a is too bright. It makes the subject look like a daylight scene while in reality it is a night effect. Doubtless the blues in the canvas photographed very light. 

No. 10--b is finer in tone, but does not seem to me to be as good as it should;perhaps a little darker printing of the waves in the foreground and the sky would improve the effect. Please experiment in this direction with, say, three more prints. 

No. 11-a: Excellent; but I think the blurring at the right edge hurts it a trifle. That, however, is not important. I wish you would print six additional proofs, making the sky above the land line a trifle grayer and the immediate foreground a trifle darker. The original of this shows the dawn and is one of the most subtile of all of Mr. Whistler's Nocturne effects. Generally speaking, I consider No. 11 the most successful of your efforts to do the Nocturne Scenes. With slight changes in the printing, I believe this negative will stand as the best I have seen done anywhere of the Nocturne Scenes. With slight changes in the printing, I believe this negative will stand as the best I have seen done anywhere of the nocturne paintings. I wish you would also print three additional prints in exact duplication if possible of the one I am returning herewith.