My passion and appreciation for the fine arts began as a child surrounded by artists - from my father, whose gift was painting in the wavering styles of Cezanne and Monet, to my Uncle Henri [Dr. Henri Rathle], who was taught by my father and painted over 1,000 oil paintings in his free time. This gained him much notoriety for his work was exhibited all over Alabama. He was even commissioned to paint a portrait of President Nixon, which still hangs in the President’s Library in Yorba Linda, California today.
Historically, in the arts, women were mostly the subjects or muses of male artists and were not always recognized for their talents and skills. Women artists were ultimately overlooked by society - and many erased from art history all together.
Mary Cassatt, the Pennsylvania born artist, was 17 years old when she began her journey as a painter in 1861, and in 1865 her career truly took off as she traveled to Europe. After becoming aggravated by her slow male classmates at the Pennsylvania Fine Arts Academy in Philadelphia, she decided to take her studies elsewhere. As Cassatt and her mother traveled throughout Europe, she became inspired by the different applications and styles of painting which brought her to study at L’ Academie des Beaux Arts in Paris. Women were not allowed to attend, but Cassatt’s refusal to conform to these rules [sounds like someone I know] earned her the ability to privately receive her masters. She began taking classes with Charles Chaplin and Thomas Couture, where she felt much more challenged as an artist and her skills became more refined, and found her own comforting style.
It did not take long for artists to notice her work, and in 1868 one of her paintings was accepted for the Paris Salon - making her one of the first two American women to exhibit there. A massive feat in itself, Cassatt was still on the path for more success and she barely had scratched the surface. Sadly, she had little to no success in the United States in 1870 after deciding to build her brand back home, and relocated back to Paris permanently in 1874. She broke free from the Paris Salon after realizing that its conventional ways and failed representation of female artists. It did not resonate how she wanted to be perceived as an artist. In doing so and staying true to her own convictions, she caught the attention of Edward Degas and was invited to join him in the Impressionists exhibit. Cassatt earned a reputation as a respected Impressionist painter and began to gain great success - and developed a friendship with Degas.
Cassatt was one of only three women impressionist painters, and the only American to fully integrate the most important artistic movement of the 19th century. Her legacy carried on with her, but as she aged and her eyesight deteriorated, she was unable to paint in her last 15 living years. Fortunately, because of her dedication to printmaking, she produced more than 220 prints during the course of her career - which remain as beautiful works of art throughout museums all over the world.
Cassatt’s commitment to ending the stereotypes against “women artists” was a priority and she became an advocate for women in the arts and provided a strong, supporting voice within the woman’s suffrage movement. As women continue to be overlooked in society in varying ways, Mary Cassatt is a true testament to forging a path for modern day female artists to speak out and champion their achievements in visual, performing, and literary arts.
