Berthe Morisot's Most Famous Paintings

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Berthe Morisot, as a key member of the French Impressionist movement, can be considered one of the most influential female artists in history. Her concentration on portraits of domestic scenes of friends and family helped to differentiate her work from other members of this famous group of artists.

[ The 'Self Portrait' is actually by Edouard Manet ]

Morisot achieved support from the Paris Salon, who quickly recognised her talent and allowed her to exhibit a number of times as her reputation started to spread. Rather than settle for this, she decided to then work alongside the Impressionist artists (as they were all to become) who would organise their own exhibitions. This would mean being more independent as an artist, and enjoying the benefits and risks that this brought along with it. Thankfully, the Impressionists would prove successful as the public started to adjust to their new ideas and technical innovations, and she would eventually exhibit at nearly all of the Impressionist events. Whilst within that group, several female painters would bring in an extra strand of content which their male counterparts were not covering, such as indoor scenes focused on the lives of women in society, as well as depicting very young children and babies. Examples of this included The Cradle and Woman at her Toilette.

The artist produced portraits of women as her main genre, and these would include members of the family and friends. They would be in a variety of poses, sometimes at work, but normally relaxing within the family home. She would then start to include their children alongside in intimate portraits, and then children together with their siblings. The public were struck by the emotions found within these painting, and how they offered an insight into a part of society that many men were not particularly familiar, even within their own lives. The uniqueness of this content, combined with great technical prowess, proved to be a winning formula and Berthe had the additional support of a strong family connection to the Manets, who themselves were already highly prominent within the art world. Ultimately, she was able to overcome societal barriers through hard work, talent, and some fortunate support from other quarters.

The painting featured here was a portrait of Berthe Morisot by Edouard Manet, titled Berthe Morisot with a Bouquet of Violets. The lives of these two artists were closely intertwined, both professionally and also personally. Berthe married Eugène Manet, the younger brother of Edouard and a painter himself, though his career would never reach the heights of his old brother. Eugène was to feature in several different paintings by Morisot, in line with her passion for painting scenes with a personal touch. This was one of her unique features within the Impressionist movement, reflecting her different viewpoint as a female painter. Her technical touches of brush were also equally sensitive and considered, particularly in the early stages of her development. An additional, and highly significant, role in the legacy of Berthe Morisot was her contribution to the reputation of female artists and helping them to start to gain a foothold in the male-dominated art world. To succeed within the groundbreaking Impressionist movement showed considerable bravery and integrity, when the artist was able to continue exhibiting at the Salon if she had chosen to take the safe option.

Only the most stubborn critic could now argue that women were incapable of producing fine art at the highest of levels. Mary Cassatt would make a similar impact, though as an American would have to rise above even greater obstacles. The femininity of this artist crept directly into her artistic style, as well as the content that she chose to capture. Whilst touching on the standard themes of the Impressionist movement, she would also capture domestic scenes too. You find a plethora of portraits, often of family and friends, within our paintings section. As her level of attention increased she would also start to produce large numbers of study drawings too, in order to perfect her figurative work. Her work most commonly featured indoor scenes within family homes, but there were also carefully planned compositions based in parks, gardens and other locations around France.

00:00 Introduction
00:11 Self Portrait
00:23 The Mother and Sister of the Artist
00:35 On the Balcony
00:46 The Artist's Sister at the Window
00:58 The Sisters
01:10 Girl on Divan
01:23 Reading
01:35 The Cradle
01:47 Summer's Day
02:00 The Dining Room
02:11 Woman at her Toilette
02:24 Before the Mirror
02:36 Young Girl in a Gown
02:47 At the Ball
02:59 Child in the Rose Garden