CASSATT, Mary
(b. 1844, Allegheny City, d. 1926, Le Mesnil-Théribus, Oise)

Susan on a Balcony Holding a Dog

1883
Oil on canvas, 101 x 65 cm
National Gallery of Art, Washington

Cassatt preferred to paint friends and acquaintances. Her sister Lydia posed frequently. After Lydia died in 1882, Susan - probably a cousin of Cassatt's housekeeper, Mathilde Vallet - made continual appearances, posing for no fewer than nine pictures up to 1883, the last and most mature of which was Susan on a Balcony Holding a Dog.