A dark aubergine vase with purple and white lilacs is shown on what looks like a windowsill or worktop in a greenhouse, with the adjoining window held open by a clot. This simplest subject is presented with an angular smoothness and a stripe characteristic of Cassatt's best work, which is not surprising given her love of gardens and flowers. Pure still life is a great rarity in her oeuvre, usually concentrated on the human figure. Occasionally, however, she placed landscape or floral elements in her compositions as colourful backgrounds and accents. This attractive painting was originally owned by Moyse Dreyfus, a Parisian collector, a friend and early patron of Cassatt.
Mary Cassatt was an American impressionist painter, pastelist and engraver who became particularly famous for her portraits of mothers and children. One could call her a European American, as she spent most of her adult life in France.
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