At the Theater

A young woman sits alone in her theater box, eyes turned away, as if something just out of frame has caught her attention. Behind her, a mirror scatters reflections of gilded balconies and chandelier light across the back of her dress. Look closely, and you'll notice the contrast: her face and jewelry are rendered with real precision, while the crowd around her dissolves into loose, glittering strokes of pastel and gouache. That's an ordinary night at the Paris Opéra as seen through the eyes of Mary Cassatt.

Cassatt arrived in Paris in 1866 and soon fell in with Edgar Degas, who invited her to exhibit alongside the Impressionists. She agreed without hesitation. Free from the Salon jury's expectations, she later recalled, she finally felt she could begin to truly live as an artist.

The theater became one of her favorite subjects. While Degas painted the performers and Renoir painted couples in their box seats, Cassatt turned her attention to the women in the audience, depicting them the way another woman would actually see them, caught mid-thought, momentarily unguarded, rather than on display for anyone watching.

P.S. Do you enjoy reading stories about art? Subscribe to the DailyArt Magazine newsletter and get them delivered straight to your inbox!