Figure Studies c. 1880

Here, you're looking at a study on paper by Mary Cassatt. The series of quick sketches capture fleeting moments, the figures loosely rendered and seemingly caught unaware. The composition presents a fascinating study in form and perspective, a deliberate act that reflects Cassatt’s engagement with impressionism, and interest in capturing the essence of modern life. Cassatt's structural choices become a visual language, questioning traditional notions of representation. The lack of detail and unfinished quality invite you to contemplate the interplay between presence and absence, reality and representation. Cassatt seems to destabilize established artistic conventions, engaging with new ways of thinking about space and perception. The lines, rather than defining the figures, suggest their existence, a gesture towards a more fluid, less defined reality.