Mary Cassatt
(1844-1926)
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Mary Stevenson Cassatt was an American painter, who lived and worked in France as an
important member of the Impressionist group, where she was the first
foreigner to be admitted. (Alfred Sisley, in spite of his
British origin, was considered French). She was a pupil of Camille
Pissaro, and specialized in
painting children.
Cassatt was born in
Allegheny City, Pennsylvania. In 1861 she began to study painting at the
Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia, but in 1866
proclaimed her independence by leaving to paint in France.
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Scott # 2181
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During the childhood of the future artist, the family traveled in Europe,
lived in France and Germany (1851-1855). During her 4-year stay in Europe
Mary became fluent in French and German. Returning to Pennsylvania in 1855,
the Cassatt family settled in Philadelphia.
At the age of 15 Mary decided to
become an artist and enrolled in 1861 at the Pennsylvania Academy of the
Fine Arts in Philadelphia. She took art classes for 4 years (1861-65) and
continued to pursue studies on her own.
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- France 2006. "Mother and Child", created 1886. Issued in a
booklet of 10 self-adhesive stamps dedicated to the Impressionists. The
stamp is a so-called NVI (No Value Indicated), and is permanently valid for
domestic letters [within France] up to 20 grams.
Soon she got frustrated with the education in the US. She felt she needed
to study in Europe, her choice was Paris. Her mother supported her
daughter’s desire. Since the Ecole des Beaux-Arts did not admit women, she
(in 1866) studied for a short period in the studio of Charles Chaplin, then
took private lessons from Jean-Léon Gérôme. In addition, Cassatt
registered among the copyists at the Louvre.
In 1868 her painting was exhibited for the 1st time in the Salon. The
most important influence on Cassatt in the years before 1875 was exercised
by Edouard Manet, although he did not accept students, she saw his works and
they were much discussed both by painters and art critics. By 1872,
after studying in the major museums of Europe, her style began to
mature, and she settled in Paris.
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In 1877 Cassatt met Degas, who advised her to join the
Impressionists. “I accepted with joy. Now I could work with absolute
independence without considering the opinion of a jury. I had already
recognized who were my true masters. I admired Manet, Courbet, and
Degas. I took leave of conventional art. I began to live.” A close
friendship with Degas began, which lasted until Degas’ death in
1917.
In 1880 Degas painted this wonderful portrait of Ms Cassatt, oil on
canvas, c. 1880-1884. The painting belongs to the National Portrait
Gallery, The Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA.
Degas and Renoir greatly influenced her style of painting, and for
a long time Cassatt was believed to be a pupil of Degas, but although
they had a mutual influence on each other's work, their relationship
was absolutely platonic. Once, on seeing some of Mary’s work, Degas
said that he would not have admitted that a woman could draw so well.
- Mary Cassatt, painted by Edgar Degas.
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One of the works she showed
was "The Cup of Tea" (1879, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York), a portrait of
her sister Lydia in luminescent pinks. Beginning in 1882 Cassatt's style took a
new turn. Mothers and children in intimate relationship and domestic settings
became her chosen theme. Her portraits were not commissioned; instead, she used
members of her own family as subjects. Below are shown a selection of her
paintings as issued on stamps.
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Scott # 3236o
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Scott # 1322
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Scott
# 665 |
- USA 1998. Mary Cassatt:
(from the sheet "Four Centuries of American Art")
"Breakfast in Bed". The stamp is number 15 in the pane of 20.
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USA 1966.
Mary Cassatt: "The Boating Party". Belongs to
The National Gallery of Art, Washington DC.
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Rwanda 1975.
Mary Cassatt: "The Bath". (painted c. 1891, belongs to The Art Institute
of Chicago).
France awarded Cassatt the
Legion of Honour in 1904; although she had been instrumental in advising the
first American collectors of Impressionist works, recognition came more slowly
in the United States. Owing to the loss of her eyesight, she was unable to paint
after 1914.
Scott # 3804-3807
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Scott # 1060
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Scott # 180
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USA 2003. On 7th
August 2003 the artwork of Mary Cassatt was chosen for the third issuance in
the American Treasures series. The four works of art appearing on the stamps
are: “Young Mother” (1888), “Children Playing on the Beach” (1884),
“On a Balcony” (1878/79) and “Child in a Straw Hat” (circa 1886).
The latter painting is also shown large size on the double-sided convertable
booklet of 5 x 4 stamps (Scott # 3807b). Click
here to see the front cover of the pane. The link will open in a
new window.
- Monaco 1977. Mary Cassatt:
"Motherhood" (1897).
- United Nations, Geneva, 1989. Mary
Cassatt: "Young mother with her Child" (1897). Issued
in commemoration of the Declaration of Human Rights. The French text
on the label reads:
Article 3. Everyone has the right to life,
liberty and security of person. The
same painting was issued on a stamp by Rwanda in 1980 (not shown on this
page).
- A very nice commercially used cover from the US, addressed to the
webmaster, cancelled in St. Louis (MO) 15th October 2003. All four
stamps from the set are on the cover, which contained a birthday greeting
from a friend.
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Cassatt’s last years were overshadowed with the loss of close people,
relatives and friends. She suffered from many diseases, like diabetes and had
cataracts on both eyes, which eventually reduced her to near blindness.
She
lived in solitude at the Château de Beaufresne, accompanied only by her
longtime housekeeper, Mathilde Valet, or in the south of France. At the outbreak
of WWI Cassatt had to give up painting entirely.
Mary Cassatt died at the Château
de Beaufresne on June 14, 1926, and was buried in the family vault at nearby
Mesnil-Théribus.
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The majority of Cassatt’s works today are in American collections, while
just a small number of paintings remain in France, where she worked. Her name is
less familiar than those of her fellow Impressionist painters Degas, Monet or
Renoir. However, Mary Cassatt is a highly original and interesting painter and
her talent does not yield to those with well-known names.
Sources and links:
Other Impressionist painters on this site (in alphabetical
order).
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