MARY CASSATT

Mary Cassatt (American, 1844–1926), Children Playing on the Beach, 1884. Oil on canvas, 38 3/8 x 29 1/4 in. National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC. Ailsa Mellon Bruce Collection, 1970.17.19. Courtesy American Federation of Arts

Mary Cassatt first arrived in Paris in 1865 to study and settled there permanently in 1874. She exhibited regularly at the Paris Salon and became increasingly interested in Impressionism. Following her friend Edgar Degas’s encouragement, she exhibited with the group, becoming one of four women to do so. Cassatt is best known for her representations of women and children.

A fully illustrated catalogue, Women Artists in Paris, 1850–1900, has been published by the American Federation of Arts and Yale University Press. Along with an art-historical overview by curator Laurence Madeline, the catalogue includes essays by Jane R. Becker, collections management associate, Metropolitan Museum of Art; Richard Kendall, former curator at large, Clark Art Institute; Bridget Alsdorf, associate professor, History of Art, Princeton University; and Vibeke Hansen, curator, Nasjonalmuseet, Oslo.