Woman and child on a balcony
Berthe Morisot·1872
Historical Context
Painted in 1872 during an early period of Morisot's career, this canvas shows a woman and child on a balcony — a subject Morisot returned to repeatedly, finding in the elevated viewpoint a sophisticated framing device that placed fashionably dressed Parisians against a backdrop of urban space and sky. Édouard Manet had used a similar motif in his Salon painting 'The Balcony' (1869) in which Morisot appeared, and her own balcony paintings develop this dialogue. The Artizon Museum in Tokyo holds this early Impressionist work.
Technical Analysis
The balcony's iron railing provides a strong geometric frame through which the viewer observes the figures and the city below. Morisot uses a relatively controlled palette of dark greens, whites, and warm flesh tones in a composition that balances the solid built elements with more freely painted figures.
