Berthe MorisotFrench, 1841–1895Sewing near the Window
Can I see it?
Not on view at present
Where is “Sewing near the Window” now? Collection: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland. Not on view at present. Checked September 29, 2026.
Cleveland, United States
It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.
- Checked
- In this state since
- Source
- The museum
About the work
This watercolor depicts Euphrasie, or Pasie, the nanny for Berthe Morisot’s young daughter Julie. Pasie appears in the artist’s apartment, sewing before a window during a contemplative moment. As with many of Morisot’s works in the medium, she used this example to develop the composition of a future painting into which she added Julie and more tightly cropped the scene. Watercolor was a constant interest for Morisot, and she practiced it from around 1870 throughout the rest of her career, creating both finished and preparatory works.
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Details
- Accession number
- 2025.209
In the catalog
Sources
- The Cleveland Museum of Art
- Image: The Cleveland Museum of Art — Museum open access
In the life of Berthe Morisot
The whole life1875–1885
Oil, watercolour and pastel at once
Grown more confident in oil, Morisot, like Degas, works in oil, watercolour and pastel at the same time. She paints very quickly but prepares with countless studies, so that she can paint “a mouth, eyes, and a nose with a single brushstroke”.
1885–1887
A turn to drawing: line and form
After 1885 drawing begins to dominate Morisot's work: she experiments with charcoal and coloured pencils and clarifies form and line, influenced by photography and Japonism. Like the Japanese prints of the time, she places objects away from the centre of the composition.
1887–1895
Squaring and tracing paper: the synthesis of her last years
Morisot starts to use squaring and tracing paper to transcribe her drawings exactly onto the canvas, which lets her build compositions with more complicated interaction between figures. Her late works are distinctive for their synthesis of the Impressionist touch with broad strokes and light reflections and the graphic approach of clear lines.
