Reine Lefebre and Margot before a Window 1902

Mary Cassatt made this painting of Reine Lefebre and Margot before a Window with oil on canvas. Just imagine the dance that occurs in the studio, the shifting, the looking, the brushstrokes. The color here is muted, though intense, as if Cassatt is allowing us to see the world through her eyes. I wonder if she struggled, putting the two figures together, this young girl in a red dress and the woman in a soft green frock with a landscape hovering in the background. I try to imagine the moment when she decided to paint the scene in a muted light, almost graying some of the strokes to capture the intensity of the moment. How does Cassatt capture the intimacy of a mother and daughter in such a complex composition? Painters are always in conversation with one another, and I see echoes of her, echoes of this painting, in the world around me.