Woman Bathing

Woman Bathing, created by Mary Cassatt between 1890 and 1891, is a masterful example of the artist’s groundbreaking achievements in late nineteenth-century printmaking. This highly complex color print utilizes a technical combination of drypoint, softground etching, and aquatint executed on laid paper. Cassatt, deeply influenced by the compositional structures and flatness of Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock prints exhibited in Paris, adapted these novel visual elements and innovative color application methods to Western intaglio techniques. The deliberate layering of these techniques allowed her to achieve exceptionally rich textures and subtle tonal gradations, moving far beyond the simple black and white impressions common in earlier fine art prints.

The period spanning 1876 to 1900 marked Cassatt’s deepest exploration of intimate domestic life, often depicting private moments of women’s routines, such as bathing, dressing, or tending to children. As a prominent American expatriate working within the French Impressionist circle, Cassatt established a unique and focused voice centered almost exclusively on the female experience. This piece exemplifies her departure from traditional academic approaches to the female figure. Instead of idealized, classicized forms, the subject is rendered with candid realism, emphasizing the ritualistic and often overlooked grace found within everyday tasks. The deliberate high vantage point and tight framing enhance the sense of quiet intimacy and observation.

This work is recognized as one of the finest of Cassatt’s celebrated series of ten color prints executed during the early 1890s. The technical difficulty involved in registering the multiple plates necessary for the color drypoint, etching, and aquatint process solidified her reputation as a formidable innovator in printmaking, especially among her contemporaries. Today, this important American print is held in the permanent collection of the National Gallery of Art, where it serves as a cornerstone example of Impressionist-era prints available for public domain study.