Mary Cassatt 1844 - 1926

Olivier Sainsère, Paris, France (acquired prior to 1920)
By descent to the present owners

In 1877, at the invitation of her friend Edgar Degas, Mary Cassatt became the only American artist to join the French Impressionist circle in Paris. Cassatt particularly admired Degas’ work in pastel and his constructive criticism and continual efforts to introduce her to new techniques had a lasting effect on her style. By the 1890s, pastel had become Cassatt's primary means of artistic expression, allowing her to demonstrate accomplished draftsmanship while simultaneously displaying a rich layering of color and tone. Executed in 1903, Tête d’enfant au chapeau rouge is a compelling example of the artist’s pastel series of children which she undertook around the turn of the century. Nancy Mowll Matthews writes, “Of all Cassatt’s works, these images of children have the greatest popular appeal. They combine a number of the winning qualities of young girls—soft, satiny skin, ‘pretty’ features, guileless expressions, charmingly awkward poses, and the frilliness of their clothes. Any surfeit of sweetness is counteracted by the masterly handling of every aspect. Lighter and simpler than the mother and child compositions of this period, the pastels of children are without detailed backgrounds and are thus more directly engaging” (Mary Cassatt, New York, 1987, p. 127).

Olivier Sainsère (1852-1923), likely the first owner of this work, was a prominent politician and patron of the arts who supported many avant-garde painters in Paris early in the 20th century, including Pablo Picasso and Fauvists such as Henri Matisse . He served as the French Secretary General from 1915-1920, and kept both artists and politicians alike in his closest circle of friends. At home he surrounded himself with discerningly selected masterpieces, adorning the walls of his Paris residence with works by Georges Seurat, Claude Monet and Pierre Auguste Renoir, among others. Many works formerly owned by Sainsère are now part of museum collections, including those of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Musée du Louvre, and Musée d’Orsay.