Mary Cassatt / Berthe Morisot: Allies in Impressionism

Mary Cassatt and Berthe Morisot, two artists thrust together due to their involvement in the Impressionist circle, have always served as an interesting comparison for art historians. Morisot proved to the Parisian art scene a woman could have both a family and a successful career while Cassatt held the belief a woman only needed her independence to be fulfilled. This exhibition showcases these two strong women artists as allies, working off one another and growing, improving their artistic output through their longstanding friendship documented in correspondences. Focusing in on the late 1800s, the paintings and works on paper presented will provide context to examine their friendship, from its rocky beginnings in the 1870s to the period in which the two were at their closest in the 1890s. Mary Cassatt / Berthe Morisot: Allies in Impressionism highlights the influence these two artists had on one another and their overarching impact on the Impressionist movement.

Sponsored in part by The Clark Foundation, Nellie and Robert Gipson, NYCM Insurance, and the Wyeth Foundation for American Art. The exhibition catalog is made possible through a generous gift from Denise Littlefield Sobel.

Related Programs: Click here to see all exhibition related programs.

Images:

Mary Cassatt, American, 1844–1926, Summertime, 1894, Oil on canvas, 39 5/8 x 32 in., Daniel J. Terra Collection, Terra Foundation for American Art, Chicago, IL, 1988.25, Photo courtesy of Terra Foundation for American Art

Berthe Morisot, French, 1841–1895, Peasant Girl among Tulips, ca. 1890, Oil on canvas, 25 3/4 x 28 5/8 in., Dixon Gallery and Gardens, Memphis, TN, Museum purchase, 1981.1, Photo courtesy of Dixon Gallery and Gardens

Berthe Morisot, French, 1841–1895, The Mozart Sonata, 1894, Oil on canvas, 18 1/8 x 21 15/16 in., Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton, MA, Bequest of Mrs. Robert S. Tangeman (E. Clementine Miller), Class of 1927, SC 1996.24.2, Photo courtesy of Smith College Museum of Art

Mary Cassatt, American, 1844–1926, Under the Horse Chestnut Tree, ca. 1895, Aquatint on drypoint printed in color on paper, sheet: 18 13/16 x 14 3/8 in., Smith College Museum of Art, Northampton, MA, Gift of Selma Erving, Class of 1927, SC 1972.50.8, Photo courtesy of Smith College Museum of Art

Mary Cassatt, American, 1844–1926, Madame de Fleury and Her Child, ca. 1890–1891, Oil on canvas, 37 9/16 x 32 3/4 in., Fenimore Art Museum, Cooperstown, New York, Gift of Eugene V. and Clare E. Thaw Charitable Trust, N0003.2024, Photograph by Richard Walker