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Let s Explore Art Mary Cassatt American Impressionist A child s guide by Katie Smith
Who was Mary Cassatt Mary Cassatt was born in Pennsylvania in 1844 Cassatt created many beautiful pictures of women and children She enjoyed working with oil paint watercolor and pastels She also made prints She started art school in the United States then moved to France to study art She spent most of her adult life in France There she joined a group of artists called the Impressionists She became friends with many of these artists She died in France in 1926 Mary Cassatt is one of the most famous American artists Her paintings are in many museums all over the world 1
Mary Cassatt Goes to Paris Mary Cassatt at the Louvre by Edgar Degas 1880 Art Students in the Louvre Gallery by Winslow Homer 1868 When she was 16 Mary Cassatt enrolled at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts After four years there Cassatt became frustrated that women students were not allowed to draw the same subjects as the men Cassatt wanted to become a professional artist but her parents didn t approve since women did not paint professionally in the 1860s After much convincing Mary Cassatt and her mother moved to Paris France in 1866 2 Women were not allowed to go to art school in Paris So Cassatt received private lessons from French artists She also studied art by observing and copying from paintings that hung in the Louvre Museum in Paris 3
What s Impressionism Poor baby I hope she ll feel better See how Cassatt shows how sad the baby is with only a few details lots of color and messy brush strokes This detail is from a painting called Susan Comforting the Baby 1881 Mary Cassatt was an Impressionist Impressionists did not try to paint perfectly They wanted to show the emotion of what they saw using many colors and few details They painted an impression of reality That s why they were called Impressionists Impressionists often used quick and messy brushstrokes They wanted to show the beauty of everyday life The Impressionist painters unique style was called Impressionism Left Spring Margot Standing in a Garden 1900 4 5
Famous Paintings These are some of Mary Cassatt s most famous works She often used oil paints Children Playing on the Beach 1884 Little Girl in a Blue Armchair 1878 The Child s Bath 1893 Young Mother Sewing 1900 6 Five O Clock Tea 1880 I like how each picture tells a story from everyday life with lots of color How many different colors do you think Mary Cassatt used 7
Degas Cassatt Morisot Edgar Degas Self Portrait 1863 The Star 1878 Edgar Degas During her stay in Paris Mary Cassatt was able to see paintings by another famous painter Edgar Degas Degas was famous for painting ballerinas Cassatt liked his new style and how he painted feelings into his work Cassatt felt that Degas was someone who thought the way she did about art Cassatt finally met Edgar Degas around 1875 He was older than Cassatt He admired Cassatt s attention to detail and drawing skills He became her tutor and they were fast friends Later they even shared a studio 8 Berthe Morisot Self Portrait 1885 In the Dining Room 1875 Berthe Morisot Degas was a founding member of the Impressionists a group of nine artists that included another woman painter Berthe Morisot Degas introduced Cassatt to the group Morisot and Cassatt had many things in common Morisot painted scenes from nature and focused on painting women and children Her work was light bright and colorful Cassatt found her style inspiring Look at Morisot s painting In the Dining Room You can see that she used lots of bright color and large messy brushstrokes If you look at Mary Cassatt s paintings you will see that they have a lot in common with this painting by her friend 9
Cassatt Makes Prints The Letter 1891 The Bath 1891 In April 1890 Mary Cassatt saw an exhibition of Japanese woodcut prints in Paris The prints were made by Japanese artists in the late 1700s Cassatt liked the way the Japanese artists used simple lines and bright colors She also liked that the prints showed scenes from everyday life The print on the left was made in 1793 by a Japanese artist named Kitagawa Utamaro Cassatt collected prints by Utamaro and other Japanese artists On the right is a print by Mary Cassatt called In the Omnibus made in 1890 It shows a mother her baby and a nanny riding on a trolley Cassatt used the same simple lines and bright colors she saw in Japanese prints to make her art 10 The Banjo Lesson 1893 Maternal Caress 1890 Mary Cassatt used a technique called etching She would scratch a design into a metal plate then coat the plate with ink The ink would stick to the carved design then transfer onto the paper like a stamp Cassatt s prints are beautiful and unique They are a wonderful example of how art can be influenced by other cultures 11
Mary Cassatt s Legacy Mary Cassatt inspired many women across the world to paint professionally She was asked to paint a large mural for the 1893 Chicago World s Fair The mural showed modern women see below Sadly this mural was lost after the fair ended Cassatt continued to paint for many years in Paris She never married but her house was always full of family and visitors She started to lose her eyesight in her 70s though she remained dedicated to supporting art and artists until she died on June 14 1926 She is buried in France and a small park in Paris is dedicated to her 12 Resources Mary Cassatt Linda Cernak The Child s World 2015 Mary Cassatt Impressionist Painter Lois Harris Pelican Publishing Co 2007 Artists Through the Ages Mary Cassatt Alix Wood Windmill Books 2016 Bibliography Art Starters Mary Cassatt National Gallery of Art National Gallery of Art Accessed April 18 2023 https www nga gov learn teachers lessons activities pre k marycassatt html Art students and copyists in the Louvre gallery Paris drawn by Winslow Homer Library of Congress Accessed April 18 2023 https www loc gov item 2002695554 Barter Judith A and Sue Roe Cassatt Mothers and Children San Francisco Chronicle Books 2019 Explore Inside Out The Prints of Mary Cassatt Colby Museum of Art Colby College Museum of Art Accessed April 18 2023 https museum exhibitions colby edu explore inside out the prints of mary cassatt Gruitrooy Gerhard Mary Cassatt An American Impressionist Broomall Mason Crest 2019 Impressionism Tate Kids Tate Accessed April 18 2023 https www tate org uk kids explore what is impressionism The Artistic Friendship of Mary Cassatt and Edgar Degas Saint Louis Art Museum April 20 2017 https www slam org blog the artistic friendship of mary cassatt andedgar degas All artist works featured in this booklet are in the Public Domain Images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons Illustrations by Katie Smith