Since I posted my piece on Berthe Morisot, I’ve unearthed a few new facts about this great painter.  Some came from an article in French by Pierre Deschodt in the context of a major Morisot exhibition at the Musée Marmottan in 2012 which we are kicking ourselves not to have found out about in time.

According to Deschodt, it was the second teacher of the two sisters - Guichard - who signed them up at the Louvre, allowing them to freely copy from the works of the great masters; and it was he who recommended both of them to Corot as possessing great talent.

Also, the mother of the two sisters was ‘at home’ on Tuesdays, her regular guests including Monet, Renoir and Degas, the latter inviting Berthe to take part in the first Impressionist exhibition in 1874, writing that ‘the name and talent of Mademoiselle Berthe Morisot are such that we cannot do without her’.  (It seems also that, after exhibiting regularly at the Salon since 1864, she stopped doing so once taken up by the other Impressionists). 

In fact she remained loyal to these exhibitions (except, as I have mentioned, in 1879 when her daughter was just a few months old) up till the final one in 1886,  by which time many of the old guard had dropped out, the only co-exhibitors still considered of major importance being Degas, Gauguin, Pissaro, Redon, Seurat and Signac, as well as Mary Cassat, the only other woman, who also participated in 1879, 1880 and 1881.  (Note that the presence of Seurat and Signac - who only took part in this final exhibition - may well have put off some of the others),

(Click here to find out which painters exhibited in the various Impressionist exhibitions).

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Another reason for adding this postscript is that, checking for books on Morisot on the internet, I discovered that there are various cheap e-books available on Kindle.

If you want a small selection of the very best, 25, I think, go for ”Les plus belles oeuvres de Berthe Morisot”, which gives title, date, medium, size and where it is to be seen (unless from a private collection).

Another one offers 230 paintings.  But the only way to see even the title  and year is to go to the Table of Contents and choose from there. Once in the book itself you have no information about the works.

One by Jacek Michalak actually has 10 more works for about the same price, but only gives title and date, though they are given in chronological order, so you can see her progress)

Finally, here are some more self-portraits, two with her daughter:

                                                        

                                                              

                                                                 (1885)

                                                                 (1885)

                                       

                                        (1887)