Mary Cassatt at the Louvre: The Paintings Gallery

Cassatt said that she posed for Degas "only once in a while when he finds the movement difficult and the model cannot seem to get his idea." In fact, she modeled for her friend on numerous occasions beginning in 1879 for a pastel titled At the Louvre , upon which Degas based this etching. Here, Degas showed Cassatt and her sister Lydia in Paris's Musée du Louvre, both involved in studying the paintings on view. Created at a time when women were less frequently seen alone in pub spaces, the image suggests the young women's independence and confidence.