Mr. and Mrs. Cassatt Reading

Mr. and Mrs. Cassatt Reading is a seminal print by Mary Cassatt American, 1844-1926, executed over a period between 1877 and 1887. This intimate work is rendered using the specialized technique of soft-ground etching in black on fine ivory laid paper. Soft-ground etching allowed Cassatt to achieve a rich, textured line quality that closely resembles the grain and spontaneity of a drawing made with pencil or crayon, a style favored during her engagement with the Impressionist movement.

Cassatt, an expatriate artist from the United States, frequently used her family as models, capturing moments of quiet domesticity within the affluent, educated middle class. The subjects are her parents, Robert S. Cassatt and Katherine Kelso Johnston Cassatt, depicted absorbed in separate intellectual pursuits within a shared space. The composition highlights the artist’s interest in the psychological complexity of private life, achieved here through skillful use of shadow and the precise definition of forms typical of her best graphic prints.

The lengthy period of production for the piece suggests Cassatt’s meticulous process as she experimented with achieving luminosity and atmospheric effects within the challenging medium of etching. This dedicated mastery of printmaking techniques solidified her reputation alongside artists like Degas. This important artwork, which reflects both American cultural subject matter and European artistic innovation, is housed in the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago. As a historically significant piece, Mr. and Mrs. Cassatt Reading is frequently studied and is often referenced among quality artworks available in the public domain.