In honor of the centennial of her death in 1926, Mary Cassatt: An American in Paris celebrates the National Gallery’s unparalleled collection of works by this impressionist master, the only American and one of only three women artists who participated in the movement. Mary Cassatt was among the most radically innovative artists working in Paris in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. She is widely viewed through an art historical lens as a French artist—she lived in France for most of her life and was deeply immersed in the city’s culture for over four decades. Within France, however, she was and continues to be regarded unequivocally as American.  

Featuring some 40 works largely drawn from the National Gallery’s collection, including paintings and works on paper, the exhibition foregrounds how her work across media was mutually informative. Rarely seen color prints inspired by an exhibition of Japanese woodcuts Cassatt saw in Paris in 1890 are shown alongside preparatory drawings, multiple states, and unique proofs that underscore the development of her complex creative process. In preparation for the exhibition, five of the National Gallery’s paintings have been cleaned and studied.

The show begins with a work from Cassatt’s travels to Italy and Spain between 1871 and 1874, where she established herself as a professional artist. It then follows her return to Paris, where she depicted city life from a woman’s perspective. There, in some of her most iconic works, she explored the emotional and psychological dimensions of the domestic sphere—portraying women engaged in everyday activities. It concludes by interrogating Cassatt’s experimental approach to paint handling, printmaking, and drawings. She developed her method through the serial exploration of women’s lived experience in the later 19th- and early 20th-century France: going out to the opera, socializing, bathing, meditating, and taking care of children.

The exhibition is organized by the National Gallery of Art, Washington.

The exhibition is curated by Rena Hoisington, curator and head, department of old master prints; Mary Morton, curator and head, department of French paintings; and Kimberly A. Jones, curator of 19th-century French paintings, all from the National Gallery of Art.

In the Library: Mary Cassatt’s American Legacy

In conjunction with Mary Cassatt: An American in Paris, the National Gallery of Art Library presents an installation of archival photographs, rare catalogs, and documentation—including Cassatt’s correspondence—that explore the artist’s American ties.  

Drawn from the wide-ranging research collections of the National Gallery, this special installation highlights lesser-known aspects of the renowned impressionist’s life, particularly her role as an artistic adviser to American audiences. Born and educated in Pennsylvania, active in Paris for most of her career, Cassatt made art that reflected a cosmopolitan identity. She fused her American training with a deep engagement with Japanese prints—especially those of Hiroshige, Hokusai, and Utamaro—and European painting, from old masters like El Greco and Diego Velázquez to the innovations of the French avant-garde.  

Cassatt shared her artistic interests and insights with her American network of family and friends, shaping private collections, cultivating support for her own work, and guiding acquisitions for public institutions. In doing so, Cassatt fostered American appreciation for both the avant-garde and the old masters, securing her legacy as an artist and cultural mediator.

Curated by Elisabeth Narkin, image specialist for architecture, and Ellen Prokop, image specialist for French art to 1900, this installation is on view from February 16 through May 15, 2026, in the East Building Library Atrium from 11:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. 

Exhibition Announcement: Mary Cassatt: An American in Paris

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Exhibition Checklist (PDF, 892.5 MB)

Curator Biographies:
Rena Hoisington, curator and head, department of old master prints
Mary Morton, curator and head, department of French paintings
Kimberly A. Jones, curator of 19th-century French paintings