Mary Cassatt – Katharine Kelso Cassatt.jpg Photo by Mary Cassatt – Wikimedia Commons

Top 10 Amazing Facts about Mary Cassatt


 

Mary Stevenson Cassatt was born on May 22, 1844, in Allegheny City, Pennsylvania which is now part of Pittsburgh. She was an American painter and printmaker. Mary was known for creating images of the social and private lives of women, she made a particular emphasis on the intimate bonds between mothers and children. 

Mary was born into an Upper-Middle-class family, her father Robert Cassatt was a successful stockbroker and land speculator. As for her mother, Katherine Cassatt came from a banking family. Mary was one of seven children, of whom two died in infancy. One of her brothers, Alexander Cassatt later became president of the Pennslyvania Railroad.

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1. Life Before Painting

Mary Cassatt-Selfportrait.jpg Photo by Mary Cassatt – Wikimedia Commons

Mary grew up in an environment that viewed travel as integral to education thus, her parents paid for her to spend five years in Europe and visited many of the capitals including Berlin, Paris, and London. During her time abroad, she learned German and French and had her first lessons in drawing and music.

Many believe that her first exposure to French artists Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, Camille Corot, and Gustave Courbet. Even though her family objected to her becoming a professional artist, she began studying painting at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia at the early age of 15. 

2. Struggles in Class

Her parents were worried that she was going to be exposed to feminist ideas and the bohemian behavior of some of the male students. Even though her parents worried, she continued her studies from 1861 through 1865 which was the duration of the American Civil War.

However, Mary became impatient with the slow pace of instruction and the patronizing attitude of her male classmates and teachers, so she decides to study the old masters on her own. Due to the fact that female students couldn’t use live models and the principal training was primarily drawing from casts, she decided to end her studies. 

In 1866, she moved to Paris with her mother and family friends acting as Chaperones. Since women couldn’t yet attend the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Mary applied to study privately with a master’s from the school. She was accepted to study with Jean-Leon Gerome, he was a highly regarded teacher known for his hyper-realistic technique. Mary changed her artistic training with daily copying in the Louvre. the museum served as a social place for Frenchmen and American female students who weren’t allowed to attend cafes where the avant-garde socialized.

3. Her Time In Paris

Mary Cassatt – The Child’s Bath – Google Art Project.jpg Photo by Mary Cassatt – Wikimedia Commons

Nearing the end of 1866, Mary joined a painting class that was taught by Charles Joshua Chaplin. In 1868, Mary also studied with artist Thomas Couture whose subjects were mostly romantic and urban. On trips to the countryside, the students would draw from life, particularly the peasants going about their daily activities. In 1868, her painting A Mandoline Player was accepted for the first time by the selection jury for the Paris Salon.

Mary continued to work in the traditional manner and submitted works to the Salon for over ten years even though there was increasing frustration.

4. Her Return To The States

In the late summer of 1870, Mary went back to the United States and lived with her family in Altoona just as the Franco-Prussian War was starting. Mary placed two of her paintings in a New York gallery and found many admirers but no purchasers. She was also dismayed at the lack of paintings to study while staying at her summer residence.

Mary even considered giving up art, she was determined to make an independent living. However, she didn’t give up, instead, she traveled to Chicago to try her luck. Some of her paintings got lost in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Shortly after the incident, her work attracted the attention of Roman Catholic Bishop Michael Domenec of Pittsburgh who commissioned her to paint two copies of paintings by Correggio in Parma, Italy.

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5. Her Impressionist Work

Mary Cassatt 1910.jpg Photo by Joseph Durand-Ruel (1862-1928) – Wikimedia Commons

After she completed her commission for the bishop, Mary traveled to Madrid and Seville where she painted a group of paintings of Spanish subjects. Even when she returned to France, she continued to express criticism of the politics of the Salon and the conventional taste.

In 1887 however, most of her entries were rejected and she ended up having no work in the salon. By this time she was invited by Edgar Degas to show her works to impressionists, and she accepted his invitation and began preparing paintings for the next impressionist show which was planned for 1878. Mary immediately felt comfortable with the impressionists and joined their cause enthusiastically. 

The exhibit of 1879 was the most successful to date. Mary displayed eleven works, and most of the critics claimed that Mary’s colors were too bright and her portraits were too accurate to be flattering to the subjects. However, those comments didn’t stop her from participating in the Impressionist Exhibitions that followed in 1880 and 1881. She remained an active member of the Impressionist circle until 1886, in that year she provided two paintings for the Impressionists in the US.

6. Her Views on the “New Woman”

Mary and her contemporaries enjoyed the wave of feminism that occurred in the 1840s which allowed them access to educational institutions such as the new coed colleges and universities. Mary was an outspoken advocate for women’s equality, Together with her friends campaigned for equal travel scholarships for students in the 1860s and the right to vote in the 1910s.

Mary was known as the “New Woman” of the 19th century from the woman’s perspective. Even though she didn’t make political statements about women’s rights in her work, she still used art to portray women in a dignified and meaningful inner life. In 1915, she showed eighteen works in an exhibition supporting the movement that was organized by Louisine Havemeyer, a committed and active feminist.

7. Her Work in The 1890s

Mary Cassatt – The Tea – MFA Boston 42.178.jpg Photo by Mary Cassatt – Wikimedia Commons

This was her busiest and most creative period where she matured considerably and became more diplomatic in her opinions. Mary became a role model for young American artists who sought her advice, among them was Lucy A. Bacon. 

She exhibited a series of highly original colored drypoint in 1891. She was attracted to the simplicity and clarity of Japanese design and the skillful use of blocks of color.  In most of her interpretations, she used primarily light, delicate pastel colors and avoided black.

In the same year, businesswoman Bertha Palmer approached Mary to paint a mural about “Modern Woman” for the Women’s Building for the World’s Columbian Exposition to be held in 1893. Mary finished the project over two years while living in France. Unfortunately, the mural didn’t survive following the run of the exhibition when the building was torn down. 

8. New Century Work

In the new century, she worked as an advisor to several major art collectors and stipulated that they eventually donate their purchases to American art museums.

In 1904, France awarded her the Legion d’honneur in recognition of her contribution to the arts. In 1910, she took a trip to Egypt which impressed Mary with the beauty of its ancient art. 

9. Legacy Left Behind

Throughout Mary’s career, she had a lot of success even after her death in 1926. For example, in 1943, SS Mary Cassatt was launched. It was a World War II Liberty Ship. Later in 1966, her painting The Boating Part was reproduced as a US postage stamp. She was later honored by the United States Postal Service with a 23-cent Great Americans series postage stamp.

However was not the end they decided to honor her further, in 2003, when four of her paintings were reproduced in the third issue of the American Treasures stamp series. The paintings were, Young Mother, Children Playing on the Beach, On A Balcony, and Child in a Straw Hat.

10. Her Relationship With Edgar Degas

Mary and Edgar had a long period of collaboration, the two painters had studios close together. They had so much in common in regard to art and literature, they both studied painting in Italy, and both were independent and never married. Many believe that they were involved in a relationship given their conservative social backgrounds. 

It has been noted that Edgar introduced Mary to pastel and engraving both of which Mary mastered quickly. As for Mary, she helped him sell his paintings and promote his reputation in America. In 1877, they were often seen at the Louvre studying artworks together. In 1884, Edgar made a portrait in oils of Mary and it was named Mary Seated Holding Cards. A Self Portrait. 

During the fall and winter of 1879-1880, Mary and Edgar worked closely both observing different types of art. She mastered her printmaking technique by day at his studio using his tools and press. 

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