The Boating Party
1893-1894
Mary Cassatt captures a quiet, intimate moment on the water, where a mother in a patterned dress cradles her baby while a man rows them across a deep blue sea. Painted in the 1890s, this piece breaks away from typical Impressionist haziness by using bold, flat colors and strong outlines, a style Cassatt borrowed from Japanese woodblock prints. As the only American artist invited to exhibit with the French Impressionists, she frequently championed the private lives of women, turning a simple boat ride into a masterpiece of modern composition.
Location: National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
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