Portrait of Alexander J. Cassatt and His Son, Robert Kelso Cassatt
Mary Cassatt·1884
Historical Context
Portrait of Alexander J. Cassatt and His Son, Robert Kelso Cassatt (1884, Philadelphia Museum of Art) is one of Cassatt's few double portraits and a rare depiction of male subjects. Alexander Cassatt, her brother and later president of the Pennsylvania Railroad, is shown in close physical proximity to his son in a tender, informal composition that breaks from the formal conventions of male portraiture. The work reflects Cassatt's broader project of humanizing and domesticating her subjects, and stands as one of her most psychologically nuanced paintings.
Technical Analysis
The close, affectionate arrangement of the two male figures in a domestic setting is treated with the same formal care Cassatt brought to her mother-and-child compositions. The palette is warm and restrained, with careful attention to the contrasting ages of the sitters — the boy's lighter, more animated face set against the father's mature gravity.
