Mary Cassatt

Mary Cassatt (1845 - 1927) was the only American to exhibit with the Impressionists. Born in Pittsburgh and the daughter of a millionaire, she spent much of her childhood in Europe and, after study at the Pennsylvania Academy of Art, returned to Europe against her father's wishes to pursue her career as an artist. Degas invited her in 1879 to join the Impressionists: like him she worked in pastels, but also she used oils and practiced etching and lithography. Cassatt spent the rest of her life in France, and was awarded the French Legion of Honour in 1904.