Mlle. Luquet in a coat and hat
ca. 1883
Medium
soft-ground etching
Dimensions
218; 128
About this artwork
height 218 mm x width 128 mm
Art Historical Context
Mary Cassatt’s “Mlle. Luquet in a coat and hat” (ca. 1883) is a delicate soft-ground etching that captures a fleeting moment of modern Parisian life. Cassatt, an American artist closely aligned with the Impressionists, frequently turned to printmaking in the early 1880s to explore the textures and movement of contemporary dress. The small scale—roughly the size of a postcard—invites intimate viewing, drawing attention to the young woman’s poised stance and the soft folds of her coat and hat. Soft-ground etching, the medium chosen here, allowed Cassatt to achieve velvety lines and subtle tonal...
About the Artist
Mary Cassatt
Mary Cassatt (1844-1926) was an American painter and printmaker who became the only American artist to exhibit with the French Impressionists. Born to a wealthy Pennsylvania family, she defied social conventions to pursue art professionally, settling permanently in Paris where Edgar Degas invited her to join the Impressionist group in 1877. Her paintings of mothers and children—rendered with Impre...