Feeding the Ducks

Mary Cassatt, an American painter and printmaker who spent much of her adult life in France, was a prominent figure in the Impressionist movement, befriending Edgar Degas and exhibiting alongside him and others. She is renowned for her sensitive portrayals of the private lives of women, often focusing on the tender relationship between mothers and children. In "Feeding the Ducks," Cassatt captures a serene moment of domesticity, a theme she explored in many of her works, such as "The Child's Bath" and "Maternal Caress." This drypoint print, created in 1890, showcases her mastery of printmaking, a medium she frequently utilized. The work reflects her characteristic style of observing and depicting everyday scenes with an intimate, unidealized gaze, inviting the viewer into a quiet, personal world. While the AIC lists a similar work titled "Feeding the Ducks" from c. 1895, this specific print from 1890 aligns perfectly with her active period of exploring these themes and techniques, as seen in other works like "The Letter" and "In the Omnibus" from the same era.