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Mary Cassatt Gallery |
Children Playing on the Beach
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Breakfast in Bed
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The Bath
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Enter Gallery
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Gallery Description
Mary Stevenson Cassatt was born on May 22, 1844 in Allegheny City, Pennsylvania, US, into a well-to-do family which afforded her a good education.
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.
Lydia was not only her elder sister, but also the closest friend and model of Mary. There are eleven known works with Lydia, among them are “The Cup of Tea”, “Lydia Working at a Tapestry Loom”, “Lydia Crocheting in the Garden at Marly”.
In 1877 Cassatt met Degas, who advised her to join the Impressionists. She accepted with joy. She felt she could work with absolute independence without considering the opinion of a jury. She had already recognized who her true masters were. She admired Manet, Courbet, and Degas. She took leave of conventional art and felt as if she began to live only then. A close friendship with Degas began, which lasted until Degas’ death in 1917.
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.
The majority of Cassatt’s works today are in American collections, while just a small number of paintings remain in France, where she worked.
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Wednesday, November, 19 th
2008
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