I would have talked about Monet today, but Berthe Morisot has her own special skill that no one really talks about that much. I was introduced to her via the Impressionists documentary Waldemar Januszczak was presenting; after he waxed poetic about her, I wanted to find out more. This was the painting he focused on, and what a masterpiece it is. This may just look like a mother gazing lovingly at her child, but looking at it a bit more closely, it's a treasure trove of color and brushstrokes. This portrait of Berthe's sister Edma looking down at her newborn daughter Blanche. It might look like the Madonna and Child have once again been painted with modern clothes of the time, but is it? Edma has one hand on her chin and one playing with the baby's veil; she looks tense. Blanche herself is sleeping in a veiled, happy dreamworld, seemingly not caring about anything else except her bed and blankets. Edma seems to have all the worries written into her face as she watches her baby sleep. Is she worried about being a good mother? (Who wouldn't be?) Does she have other problems weighing on her mind? Perhaps she wonders if she should have stayed an artist like Berthe did, although Berthe did eventually marry and have a child of her own. So many things on a woman's mind, not only back then, but now as well.
What was also so wonderful about this painting was Berthe's mastery of white. Berthe's brushstrokes bring out her subject matter, not hide it behind blinding white. The veil over the baby's bed is softly painted as to contrast with the color of Edma's dress and the look on her face. It is a masterpiece of subtlety and color, and Morisot certainly earned more than a mere mention with her phenomenal skill.
Cheers
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