Mimi as a Brunette

1889

Mimi as a Brunette, 1889. Mary Cassatt (American, 1844–1926). Drypoint; The Cleveland Museum of Art, Bequest of Charles T. Brooks 1941.82 In 1888, Mary Cassatt began to experiment with drypoint, a printmaking technique in which an artist draws directly into a copper plate with a needle. This print belongs to a series that she created at this time, each characterized by a sketchiness akin to drawing. It depicts Mary (Mimi) Johnston, Cassatt's second cousin who traveled frequently to Europe and spent long periods of time in Paris. The artist focused most closely on her sitter's face and unfocused gaze, which suggests a sense of introspection. The sitter for this print, Mary (Mimi) Johnston, was able to spend extended periods of time in Paris while her husband, Princeton professor William Milligan Sloane, researched and wrote an exhaustive study of Napoleon Bonaparte.