Nurse and Baby Bill (No.2)

Mary Cassatt was born in Pittsburgh but traveled throughout Europe and spent many years studying the Old Masters. In 1874, she settled in Paris permanently. She was a friend of Degas and the first American artist to exhibit with the impressionists. Cassatt’s prints were inspired by Japanese woodblocks. She is best known for her domestic images of women and children. This piece depicts a close maternal relationship between a nurse and her charge, whose beauty and dependency is in no way lessened by the absence of a biological bond. The small scale and sketchy technique contribute to the work’s intimacy.

Moss Davis ‘21