Berthe Morisot

M. & Mme Ernest Rouart, Paris (Mme Rouart née Julie Manet)
M. & Mme Julien Rouart, Paris
Sale: Drouot Montaigne, Paris, November, 1997, lot 20
Private Collection (acquired at the above sale and sold: Sotheby's, New York, May 11, 2000, lot 122)
Acquired at the above sale by the present owner

Paris, Musée de l'Orangerie, Berthe Morisot, 1941, no. 72

Monique Angoulvent, Berthe Morisot, Paris, 1933, no. 454
Marie-Louise Bataille & Georges Wildenstein, Berthe Morisot, Paris, 1961, no. 188,  fig. 212, illustrated, n.p.
Alain Clairet, Delphine Montalent & Yves Rouart, Berthe Morisot, Catalogue Raisonné de l'oeuvre peint, Paris, 1997, no. 192, illustrated p. 208

Work is in very good condition. Canvas is lined. Surface is clean. Under UV light: two small spots of inpainting near center of left edge, one small dot at upper right corner and one spot towards lower left corner. A few pin dots at bottom of left edge, otherwise fine.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Morisot used her daughter, as well as numerous other family members, ranging from her nephew Marcel Gobillard, to her husband Eugène, to her maid Pasie, as subjects for her work throughout her life.  Linda Nochlin writes "We associate Morisot, quite naturally, not with work scenes, however ambiguous, but rather with the representation of domestic life, of mothers of, more rarely, fathers specifically, her husband Eugène Manet--and daughters engaged in recreation."  (Linda Nochlin, Perspectives on Morisot, New York, 1990, p. 98)

Whatever her subject matter may have been, "[painting] was the work of utmost seriousness for Morisot.  She was, as a 1987 exhibition catalogue of her work reveals, unsparing of herself, perpetually dissatisfied, often destroying works or groups of works that did not satisfy her fierce standards." (ibid., p. 98)

Morisot participated in three exhibitions the year she painted this work; including a highly successful group show of Impressionists in New York organized by Durand Ruel and the eighth and final Impressionist group exhibition in Paris.