Floor plan

East wing: The Nineteenth CenturyImpressionism

Impressionism

A Woman Seated at a Bench on the Avenue du Bois, by Berthe Morisot, 1885
Two groups of people face off in front of a hilly landscape in this loosely painted, vertical scene. On our left, a pale young man in a white tunic looks with eyes wide and lips parted at a group of three people on our right. The young man's right hand, on our left, is raised to stroke the head of a reddish-brown horse at his right shoulder. He stands with feet planted wide, knees bent, and he curls his left hand into a fist. Behind him, a man holds up a fluttering, light blue cape. A mottled red wall forms a backdrop to this scene on our left. The tight group gathered under a tree on our right stares back at the young man. The trio is made up of a balding, older man, a light-skinned boy also wearing a white tunic, and, closest to us, a brown-skinned woman wearing a marigold-orange shirt and a maroon-red skirt. Behind this group, a pair of pale raised arms suggests a fourth person, but the head is missing or has been painted over. The ground under the people is saffron orange. In the center of the picture, beyond the people, a group of horses stands near a green bank by a river, its surface reflecting white. The far bank is lined with white buildings. Tan and olive-green slopes rise from the opposite riverbank under a pale blue sky with cream-white clouds sweeping along the top edge of the composition. The artist signed his name in red paint in the lower right corner: “Degas.”
The Red Kerchief, by Claude Monet, c. 1868–73
After the Bath, by Mary Cassatt, 1901
Impressionist painting of two girls on balcony, bright flower hat, knitting basket.
Conversation: Ludovic Halévy and Madame Cardinal (The Conversation) for "La Famille Cardinal" by Ludovic Halévy, by Edgar Degas, c. 1880–83

The works in this room are listed below.

Works in this room

Painters in 1870s Paris who worked quickly, often outdoors, to catch light as it changed.

First room, north wall

  1. A Woman Seated at a Bench on the Avenue du Bois, by Berthe Morisot, 1885
    A Woman Seated at a Bench on the Avenue du BoisBerthe Morisot, 1885Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Two groups of people face off in front of a hilly landscape in this loosely painted, vertical scene. On our left, a pale young man in a white tunic looks with eyes wide and lips parted at a group of three people on our right. The young man's right hand, on our left, is raised to stroke the head of a reddish-brown horse at his right shoulder. He stands with feet planted wide, knees bent, and he curls his left hand into a fist. Behind him, a man holds up a fluttering, light blue cape. A mottled red wall forms a backdrop to this scene on our left. The tight group gathered under a tree on our right stares back at the young man. The trio is made up of a balding, older man, a light-skinned boy also wearing a white tunic, and, closest to us, a brown-skinned woman wearing a marigold-orange shirt and a maroon-red skirt. Behind this group, a pair of pale raised arms suggests a fourth person, but the head is missing or has been painted over. The ground under the people is saffron orange. In the center of the picture, beyond the people, a group of horses stands near a green bank by a river, its surface reflecting white. The far bank is lined with white buildings. Tan and olive-green slopes rise from the opposite riverbank under a pale blue sky with cream-white clouds sweeping along the top edge of the composition. The artist signed his name in red paint in the lower right corner: “Degas.”
    Alexander and BucephalusEdgar Degas, 1861/1862Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  3. The Red Kerchief, by Claude Monet, c. 1868–73
    The Red KerchiefClaude Monet, c. 1868–73Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

First room, south wall

  1. After the Bath, by Mary Cassatt, 1901
    After the BathMary Cassatt, 1901Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. Impressionist painting of two girls on balcony, bright flower hat, knitting basket.
    Two Sisters (On the Terrace)Pierre-Auguste Renoir, 1881Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. Conversation: Ludovic Halévy and Madame Cardinal (The Conversation) for "La Famille Cardinal" by Ludovic Halévy, by Edgar Degas, c. 1880–83
    Conversation: Ludovic Halévy and Madame Cardinal (The Conversation) for "La Famille Cardinal" by Ludovic HalévyEdgar Degas, c. 1880–83Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Second room, south wall

  1. A work made of oil on canvas.
    Watering Place at MarlyAlfred Sisley, 1875Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. Shown from the knees up, a young girl with pale skin, wearing a coral-peach dress, sits facing and looking at us in this loosely painted, vertical portrait. Her knees are angled slightly to our left, and her hands rest in her lap. She has a round face and smooth, lightly flushed cheeks. She has brown eyes under arched brows, a delicate, snub nose, and her rose-pink lips are closed. Her hair, which is painted with broad strokes of caramel brown and moss green, is parted on one side and pulled smoothly back, presumably tied behind her head. Tendrils fall over her shoulders. Her dress is gathered around her neck and tied with a bow at the back. The loose sleeves fall to just below her elbows, and the dress is belted around the waist. A curving swipe of canary-yellow paint could be a buckle at the front. The fabric of the dress is painted with long, visible strokes of shell and rose pink, butter yellow, and ivory white, and a few touches of sage green and periwinkle blue for shadows. She wears a ring on the middle finger of her right hand. The space around her is loosely painted with strokes of electric and cobalt blue, with unpainted canvas visible at some of the edges. To our left, over the girl's shoulder, a wooden bird cage holds an emerald-green parakeet. The bird is streaked with royal blue along its back, and the area around its hooked beak is apple red. The cage has a mint-green bow and ribbon along the top. The artist signed the painting in green on the lower right corner: “Berthe Morisot.”
    The Artist's Daughter with a ParakeetBerthe Morisot, 1890Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  3. In the Omnibus, by Mary Cassatt, 1890–91
    In the OmnibusMary Cassatt, 1890–91Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  4. A work made of oil on canvas.
    Mill of Pont MaupuitJean Baptiste Armand Guillaumin, c. 1900Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Second room, north wall

  1. Estérel Village, by Edgar Degas, c. 1890
    Estérel VillageEdgar Degas, c. 1890Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. Sheet of Studies and Sketches, by Edgar Degas, 1858
    Sheet of Studies and SketchesEdgar Degas, 1858Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  3. By the Seashore, by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, 1883
    By the SeashorePierre-Auguste Renoir, 1883Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  4. Shown from the chest up, a pale-skinned man in a suit sits in a high-backed chair, looking slightly to our right in this vertical portrait painting. His eyes and head are both turned slightly to our right, with only one ear visible on our left. His shoulder on our right and the right side of the chair are slightly cut off by the edge of the painting. He has a straight nose, high cheekbones, and pale pink closed lips. His eyes are dark, with small shadows beneath them. His black, wavy hair is parted on our right and cropped short on the sides of his head, with thick, defined waves on top. He has a light brown mustache that extends past the edge of his lips and flips up at the ends and a small, thin goatee. Beneath his chin, the collar of his white shirt is visible. The man wears an open suit jacket with a black vest, which folds slightly just below his chest, revealing a glimpse of his white shirt beneath it in a gap between buttons. The chair is only visible from the man’s shoulders up and ends at his forehead. It has a curved, round top back with a red frame and dark green upholstery. The part of the red frame on the right side of the painting has white and yellow highlights. The background is dark gray with visible brushstrokes. The artist signed and dated the painting at the top left, “F. Bazille. 1866.”
    Edouard BlauFrédéric Bazille, probably 1869Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Third room, north wall

  1. Self-Portrait, by Edgar Degas, 1857
    Self-PortraitEdgar Degas, 1857Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. Painting of a pond seen up close spotted with thickly painted pink and white water lilies and a shadow across the top third of the picture.
    Water LiliesClaude Monet, 1906Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago