Mary Cassatt

Cassatt, Mary Stevenson

American, 1844 - 1926

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We look slightly down onto a woman dressed in golden yellows, sitting in a pale green chair, with a nude child sitting in her lap as they both gaze into a mirror in this vertical portrait painting. Both the people have pale, peachy skin. The chair is angled to our left so the woman’s knees and child cant down toward the lower left corner of the composition, and the woman leans onto the arm closer to us. The chair is painted mint green and the rose-pink upholstery is visible on the seat and a corner behind the woman’s shoulder. To our right, the woman’s vibrant, copper-colored hair is pulled loosely to the back of her head. She has a rounded nose, flushed cheeks, and her full, coral-pink lips are closed. Her long dress has a low, U-shaped neckline. The fabric shimmers from pale, cucumber green to light sunshine yellow. The sleeves of the dress split over the shoulder and a second long, goldenrod-yellow sleeve falls from her elbow off the bottom edge of the canvas. An oversized sunflower, larger than the woman’s face, is affixed to her dress near her left shoulder, closer to us. She looks with dark eyes down toward the small, gold-rimmed mirror she holds in her right hand, farther from us. The child also holds the handle of the mirror with both hands, and in the reflection, the child looks back at us with dark eyes, a button nose, and pink lips. The child’s hair in the reflection is the same copper color as the woman’s, but the child on her lap has blond, shoulder-length hair. The woman rests one hand on the child’s left shoulder, closer to us. The child has a rounded belly and smooth, rosy limbs. The woman and child are reflected in a second mirror hanging on the wall alongside them, opposite us. Their reflections are very loosely painted. The wall behind the pair is sage green across the top and it shifts to fawn brown across the bottom. Brushstrokes are visible throughout, especially in the woman’s dress and hair, and are more blended in the bodies and faces. The artist signed the painting in the lower right corner, “Mary Cassatt.”
Mary Cassatt, Woman with a Sunflower, c. 1905, oil on canvas, Chester Dale Collection, 1963.10.98

Woman with a Sunflower

Mary Cassatt · c. 1905 · oil on canvas ·  Accession ID  1963.10.98

We look slightly down into a lime-green and white rowboat carrying a woman holding a baby and a man in this nearly square painting. The man wears midnight-blue shoes, pants, jacket, and soft, floppy cap. He sits with his back to us, bending forward to row the boat, which is cropped by the bottom edge of the canvas. The left side of his ruddy face is visible over his left shoulder. The woman and baby both have pale skin. The woman and baby sit across from the man, facing us to our left in the bow. The woman’s long-sleeved, sky-blue dress is crosshatched with pink lines. The baby leans back in the woman’s arms, and wears a pink dress, blue socks, and brown shoes. The wide-brimmed hats on both the woman and baby are painted pale celery green. They gaze toward or just past the man. The corner of the boat’s sail, also painted pale green, is pulled taunt by the wind to our left. Azure-blue water surrounds the boat up to the high horizon line, which brushes the top edge of the painting. The shoreline in the distance is lined with trees and dotted with white houses with red roofs.
Mary Cassatt, The Boating Party, 1893/1894, oil on canvas, Chester Dale Collection, 1963.10.94

The Boating Party

Mary Cassatt · 1893/1894 · oil on canvas ·  Accession ID  1963.10.94

A woman standing on a ladder propped against a wall hands fruit down to a nude child held by a second woman in this vertical, partially colored print. The scene is printed with areas of mostly flat color in shades of vivid green and pastel peach and pink. The women and child have peachy-toned skin and brown hair. Both women wear long-skirted dresses with long, loose sleeves, and their hair is pulled back in buns at the napes of their necks. The ladder, to our left, leans against the verdant green vines and yellow fruit growing up a wall, which itself is the color of the cream-white paper. The woman standing on the ladder wears a pale, frost-green dress with a white kerchief at her neck. She looks down in profile at the child to our right. The child sits facing away from us in the other woman’s arms, bare buns squished along one forearm. The child reaches for the fruit, perhaps a cluster of small grapes. The second woman wears blush pink, and her face is hidden by the child’s head. An opening in the wall to the right leads back to an open space with more greenery.
Mary Cassatt, Gathering Fruit, c. 1893, color drypoint, softground etching, and aquatint on laid paper, Rosenwald Collection, 1943.3.2756

Gathering Fruit

Mary Cassatt · c. 1893 · color drypoint, softground etching, and aquatint on laid paper ·  Accession ID  1943.3.2756

Printed with black lines on cream-white paper, a woman standing on a ladder propped against a wall hands fruit down to a nude child held by a second woman in this vertical etching. The women wear long-skirted dresses with long, loose sleeves, and their hair is pulled back in buns at the napes of their necks. The ladder, to our left, leans against vines growing up a wall. The woman standing on the ladder leans and looks down in profile at the child to our right. The child sits facing away from us in the other woman’s arms, bare buns squished along one forearm. The child reaches for the fruit, perhaps a cluster of small grapes. The second woman’s face is hidden by the child’s head. An opening in the wall to the right leads back to an open space.
Mary Cassatt, Gathering Fruit, c. 1893, drypoint and softground etching on laid paper, Rosenwald Collection, 1943.3.2755

Gathering Fruit

Mary Cassatt · c. 1893 · drypoint and softground etching on laid paper ·  Accession ID  1943.3.2755

A woman standing on a ladder propped against a wall hands fruit down to a nude child held by a second woman in this vertical colored print. The scene is printed with areas of mostly flat color in shades of vivid green, earthy browns, and pastel pinks and blue. The women and child have peachy-toned skin and brown hair. Both women wear long, floral-patterned dresses with long, loose sleeves, and their hair is pulled back in buns at the napes of their necks. The ladder, to our left, leans against the verdant green vines growing up the brown wall. The woman standing on the ladder wears a powder-blue dress over an apricot-orange and white patterned kerchief around her neck. She looks down in profile at the child to our right. The child sits facing away from us in the other woman’s arms, bare buns squished along one forearm. The child reaches for the fruit, perhaps a cluster of small grapes. The second woman wears rose pink, and her face is hidden by the child’s head. An opening in the wall to the right leads back to an open space with more greenery. The sky above is a strip of topaz blue along the top edge of the print.
Mary Cassatt, Gathering Fruit, c. 1893, color drypoint, softground etching, and aquatint on laid paper, Rosenwald Collection, 1943.3.2757

Gathering Fruit

Mary Cassatt · c. 1893 · color drypoint, softground etching, and aquatint on laid paper ·  Accession ID  1943.3.2757

Shown from the knees up, a young woman with peachy skin and red hair sits facing us on a pine-green bench in this vertical painting. She sits with her body angled to our right, and her left elbow, on our right, hooks over the top slat of the bench. Her head tilts slightly to our right to rest on the curled fingers of that hand. In her other hand, she holds up a red flower on a short stem. Her hair is pulled up and back over a high forehead, and her cheeks are deeply flushed. Her pink lips are closed, and she looks down and to our left at the flower with gray eyes. She has an oval-shaped face and a hint of a double chin. Her white dress is painted with ice-blue shadows and folds. It has a deep V neck that reaches to an apron-like pinafore patterned with vertical bands of pale lilac that alternate with angled daubs of blue. Beyond her is a loosely painted landscape with grassy areas and clusters of tall trees painted in spring, emerald, and sea glass green. The edge of the grassy field nearly brushes the top edge of the canvas, and the trees are cropped by it. The artist signed the lower right, “Mary Cassatt.”
Mary Cassatt, Woman with a Red Zinnia (Revery), 1891-1892, oil on canvas, Chester Dale Collection, 1963.10.99

Woman with a Red Zinnia (Revery)

Mary Cassatt · 1891-1892 · oil on canvas ·  Accession ID  1963.10.99

Two women, one holding a baby on her lap, sit on the long bench seat of an omnibus in this vertical, colored print. The women and their full skirts take up almost the width of the composition against the peacock-blue bench, which extends off both sides. The women and baby’s skin are the color of the cream-white paper. The woman to our left wears a tan-colored, high-collared dress, gloves, and hat. She looks off to our right, almost in profile. She has a round face and the hint of a double chin. One gloved hand rests on a cane. The other woman holds the baby and tips her head down toward the child. That second woman wears a tea rose-pink dress and a hat with areas of darker pink, fern green, and white. Both women’s black hair is pulled up under their hats. The baby’s ruffled white bonnet, blousy garment, stockings, and shoes are also the white of the paper, though the lips are picked out with pink. The structure of the women’s bodices, puffy long sleeves, and long skirts as well as the baby’s clothing are outlined in black. A row of windows behind them, parallel to the top of the bench, are blank, also the color of the paper. The panel behind the women’s legs is peanut brown, and the top of the omnibus is white as well. The artist signed the work with her initials in graphite in the bottom left, “MC.”
Mary Cassatt, In the Omnibus, 1890-1891, color drypoint, softground etching, and aquatint on laid paper, Rosenwald Collection, 1943.3.2753

In the Omnibus

Mary Cassatt · 1890-1891 · color drypoint, softground etching, and aquatint on laid paper ·  Accession ID  1943.3.2753

Printed with black lines on cream-white paper, two women, one holding a baby on her lap, sit on the long bench seat of an omnibus in this vertical composition. The women and their full skirts take up almost the width of the composition against the bench, which extends off both sides. The woman to our left wears a high-collared dress, gloves, and hat. She looks off to our right, almost in profile. She has a round face and the hint of a double chin. One gloved hand rests on a cane. The other woman holds the baby and tips her head down toward the child. Both women’s black hair is pulled up under their hats. The baby wears a ruffled bonnet, a blousy garment, stockings, and shoes. A row of windows behind them, parallel to the top of the bench, open onto an arched bridge spanning a river with boats. To our left, the water’s edge is lined with puffy forms reminiscent of trees and bushes.
Mary Cassatt, In the Omnibus, 1890-1891, drypoint with graphite on wove paper, Rosenwald Collection, 1946.21.93

In the Omnibus

Mary Cassatt · 1890-1891 · drypoint with graphite on wove paper ·  Accession ID  1946.21.93

We look slightly down onto a young woman sitting at a writing desk as she licks an envelope in this vertical, color print. A table folds down or extends from a tall secretary desk to our right. The blotter on the table and the woman’s long dress are both royal blue. The dress has a vaguely floral pattern in tan, and the jacket is open to reveal a vertically pleated, beige-pink shirt beneath. The woman’s skin is faintly tinted almost yellow. Her black hair is pulled back over dark brows and a delicate nose. She holds the open flap of the envelope to her mouth with both hands. A piece of white paper lies on the desktop in front of her. She sits in a brown chair, and the wallpaper of the room is patterned with green and muted brown flowers against a white background. The sheet is inscribed with graphite across the right half of the bottom margin, “Edition de 25 épreuves Imprimée par l'artiste et M. Leroy Mary Cassatt.”
Mary Cassatt, The Letter, 1890-1891, color softground etching, drypoint and aquatint on laid paper, Chester Dale Collection, 1963.10.251

The Letter

Mary Cassatt · 1890-1891 · color softground etching, drypoint and aquatint on laid paper ·  Accession ID  1963.10.251

We look slightly down onto a young woman sitting in an upholstered chair and tightly hugging a nude, blond child in this vertical, colored print. Both have pale, peach-toned skin. The woman’s black hair is pulled back though a couple tendrils curl on her forehead. Her eyes are downcast and her pink lips parted. She wears a long, cream-white dress dotted with blush-pink, petal-like forms. One arm is under the baby’s chubby bottom and the other braces the child behind the shoulders. The baby wraps their arms around the woman’s neck so they are cheek to cheek. The chair sits in front of a bed with a boxy frame and a pillowy white mattress. The upholstery on the woman’s chair and the wallpaper behind her are patterned with dusky rose-pink flowers and vines against butter yellow. The floor is coral orange. The artist signed the print in graphite under the lower right corner, “Mary Cassatt.”
Mary Cassatt, Maternal Caress, 1890-1891, color drypoint, softground etching, and aquatint on wove paper, Gift of Miss Elisabeth Achelis, 1942.6.33

Maternal Caress

Mary Cassatt · 1890-1891 · color drypoint, softground etching, and aquatint on wove paper ·  Accession ID  1942.6.33

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