Mary Cassatt: Redefining Impressionism Through a Feminine Lens
Mary Cassatt broke away from the submissive roles traditionally assigned to women in Impressionist art. Unlike many of her contemporaries, she did not portray women as sexualized objects, but rather as individuals with agency, depth, and lives of their own.
Born in 1844, Mary Cassatt is regarded as one of the most renowned painters in the history of art. Defying convention from the start, she was an unmarried woman living far from her native country—an unusual path for her time. Yet it was her undeniable talent that propelled her to prominence within the male-dominated Impressionist movement of the 19th century.
At MAG The Women Gallery, we are proud to highlight her work and shed light on the life and legacy of this visionary women artist.
An ongoing battle to have her true value acknowledged:
Mary Cassatt developed an early passion for art and set her sights on becoming a painter.
During her childhood, Mary Cassatt traveled abroad extensively. In the 1850s, she spent several years in Germany and France, where she learned the languages and developed a keen interest in drawing. Upon returning to Philadelphia, she enrolled at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, beginning her formal training as a painter in 1861.
Although her parents supported her interest in the arts, they—like many at the time—did not view being an artist as a suitable profession for a woman. Nevertheless, Cassatt pursued her artistic education until 1865, when she grew frustrated with the limitations placed on female students. A year later, she moved to Paris, France, where her career began to flourish.
Establishing Herself in Paris:
Traditionally, most aspiring artists living in Paris studied at the École des Beaux-Arts. However, Cassatt was denied admission because she was a woman. To overcome this barrier, she pursued independent study, taking private lessons with renowned French painter Jean-Léon Gérôme—while also gaining hands-on experience as a copyist at the Louvre.
In addition to producing copies of masterworks, Cassatt created original paintings during her early years in Paris, including Two Women Throwing Flowers. Hoping to be selected for the traditional Salon—an annual exhibition featuring works chosen under strict academic standards—most of these early pieces were painted in a realist style. However, after facing repeated rejections and growing disillusioned with the treatment of female artists, she abandoned the Salon system and found her place among Paris’s avant-garde: the Impressionists.
Breaking Tradition: The Rise of Impressionism:
Cassatt was invited to exhibit with the Impressionists by Edgar Degas, an established artist whose work she had admired for years.
The Impressionists shared a distinctive approach to painting, marked by bold brushstrokes, a focus on everyday subjects, and a practice of working en plein air, or outdoors. Although most of the artists associated with the movement—including Claude Monet, Édouard Manet, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir—were men, the Impressionists welcomed and showcased the work of women artists as well, including the “virtuoso colorist” Berthe Morisot and, of course, Mary Cassatt.
Cassatt began exhibiting her work—including the iconic Little Girl in a Blue Armchair—with the Impressionists in 1879, five years after the group’s first independent exhibition. For the remainder of her career, she rejected academic realism and stepped beyond the confines of the studio, creating Impressionist paintings and pastels that reflected her evolving vision.
At MAG The Women Gallery, we are passionately dedicated to our mission: celebrating and showcasing the works of women artists who have too often been overlooked in the art world. Our focus is on these trailblazing figures whose contributions have profoundly shaped the course of art history. Explore more inspiring stories and insights in the blog section of our website.
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