Reine Lefebvre Holding a Nude Baby (Mother and Child)
Artist
Mary Cassatt
(American, active in France, 1844–1926)
Date1902–1903
Mediumoil on canvas
Dimensionscanvas: 68.1 × 57.3 cm (26 13/16 × 22 9/16 in.)
framed: 94.6 × 83.8 × 10.8 cm (37 1/4 × 33 × 4 1/4 in.)
framed: 94.6 × 83.8 × 10.8 cm (37 1/4 × 33 × 4 1/4 in.)
ClassificationsPaintings
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number1909.15
Label TextFrom a socially prominent family in the city of Pittsburgh, Cassatt faced parental disapproval for her aspirations to become a professional artist. After studying at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, she left for Europe and ultimately settled in Paris. There she became friends with Edgar Degas, who invited her to show with the impressionists in their fourth exhibition in 1879. She was the only American to do so. Through her association with the impressionists, Cassatt’s style evolved with looser brushwork, brighter palette, spatial experimentation, and a focus on the theme of motherhood. Despite the tender show of affection in the painting, the woman depicted here is not the baby’s mother. Reine Lefebvre was a cook at Cassatt’s country chateau and modeled for the artist on many occasions between 1902 to 1903. Cassatt was a fine art advisor to friends and collectors, in addition to her artistic practice—a role that helped spread the awareness and acceptance of impressionism across the globe.ProvenanceDurand-Ruel & Sons, New York, NY, by 1907; sold to the Museum, 1909.On View
Not on view
