How does this artwork elucidate its Analysis?
The Boating Party was one of the rare instances in which Cassatt depicted a man. Though the roles of each figure in the painting are unclear, Griselda Pollock believes that Cassatt is referencing the family dynamic of the late 1800s. Cassatt, according to Pollock, may have been attempting to show that while the man focuses on his work (i.e. rowing), the woman watches over the child. This dynamic is further emphasized by the use of the oar which Pollock claims may be being used to separate the male and female realms. Cassatt, who was known for associating women with nature, creativity, and renewal, may have placed the woman and child as the focal point of the painting because she wanted to show the importance of the mother role in society. Though there is no definitive relationship between the members of the painting, Pollock assumed that the woman is the mother of the child based on Cassatt’s previous works which highlighted the mother-child relationship.Pollock also states that the relationship between the man, woman, and child is suggested by their hands all meeting in the middle, while only the child and woman make direct contact. This fact, Pollock indicates, was meant to show the physical and psychological distance of the man from the other occupants of the boat.Several scholars have suggested that Cassatt wished to make the mother and child the focal point of the painting by positioning them at the intersection of the diagonal lines formed by the oar, the sail, and the man's arm. Cassatt also uses these elements to bring the spectator into the painting itself.Nancy Mathews regards the painting as an exploration of themes from different phases of Cassatt's career. Mathews claims that The Boating Party attempts to bring Cassatt’s past and present into the same work. The boatsman, who is depicted in dark colors in the foreground, represents Cassatt’s earlier artwork; the brightly lit mother and child highlight Cassatt’s current artistic subject.