---
title: "Mary Cassatt — AP Art History Definition & Exam Guide"
description: "Mary Cassatt was an American Impressionist whose print The Coiffure shows Japanese woodblock influence, a go-to example of cross-cultural exchange in Unit 4."
canonical: "https://fiveable.me/ap-art-history/key-terms/cassatt"
type: "key-term"
subject: "AP Art History"
unit: "Unit 4"
---

# Mary Cassatt — AP Art History Definition & Exam Guide

## Definition

Mary Cassatt (1844-1926) was an American Impressionist painter and printmaker working in Paris whose drypoint-and-aquatint print The Coiffure (c. 1890-91) borrows flattened space, bold outlines, and elevated viewpoints from Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock prints, making her a model example of cross-cultural influence in AP Art History Topic 4.1.

## What It Is

[Mary Cassatt](/ap-art-history/key-terms/mary-cassatt "fv-autolink") was an American artist who built her career in Paris alongside the French Impressionists, especially Edgar Degas, who invited her to exhibit with the group. She focused on intimate scenes of women and children in domestic settings, subjects she could observe directly since social rules limited where a respectable woman could paint in the 19th century. That constraint shaped her art, which is exactly the kind of cause-and-effect relationship the CED asks you to explain (how [cultural practices](/ap-art-history/unit-1/cultural-influences-on-prehistoric-art/study-guide/2QXmHz69vTrp9z7Z6DRt "fv-autolink") and physical setting affect art making).

For the AP exam, Cassatt matters most for **The Coiffure** (c. 1890-91), a drypoint and aquatint print of a woman fixing her hair. After seeing a major exhibition of Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock prints in Paris in 1890, Cassatt made a series of prints adopting their visual language. You can see flattened space, strong contour lines, blocks of pattern, an elevated viewpoint, and a quiet everyday subject. She didn't copy a Japanese print; she absorbed its compositional logic into a Western printmaking [technique](/ap-art-history/unit-2/cultural-contexts-ancient-mediterranean-art/study-guide/KhkvkmZbJ8zV8aWNPu0J "fv-autolink"). That makes her the textbook case of Japonisme, the late 19th-century European craze for Japanese art.

## Why It Matters

Cassatt lives in **[Unit 4](/ap-art-history/unit-4 "fv-autolink"): Later Europe and Americas, 1750-1980 CE**, specifically **Topic 4.1: Interactions Within and Across Cultures**. She supports both learning objectives there. For **[AP Art History](/ap-art-history "fv-autolink") 4.1.A**, her focus on domestic life reflects how 19th-century gender norms (a cultural practice) shaped what a woman artist could paint. For **AP Art History 4.1.B**, The Coiffure is direct evidence that exposure to other cultures changed European and American art. The CED's essential knowledge says artists were affected by diverse cultures largely through colonialism and expanding global trade, and Japan's forced opening to Western trade in the 1850s is what flooded Paris with the woodblock prints Cassatt studied. If an exam question asks you to explain cross-cultural influence in 19th-century art, Cassatt is one of the cleanest answers available.

## Connections

### Colonialism and global trade (Unit 4)

Japanese prints reached Paris because Western powers forced Japan open to trade in the mid-1800s. Cassatt's [Japonisme](/ap-art-history/key-terms/japonisme "fv-autolink") is the artistic ripple of that geopolitical event, which is exactly the pattern LO 4.1.B wants you to explain.

### [Avant-garde (Unit 4)](/ap-art-history/key-terms/avant-garde)

Impressionists like Cassatt rejected the official [Salon](/ap-art-history/key-terms/salon "fv-autolink") system and exhibited independently. Her willingness to borrow from a non-Western tradition instead of European academic models is part of what made the group avant-garde.

### [Abstraction (Units 4-8)](/ap-art-history/key-terms/abstraction)

The flattened space and bold outlines Cassatt took from [ukiyo-e](/ap-art-history/key-terms/ukiyo-e "fv-autolink") helped train European eyes to accept pictures that don't imitate deep, realistic space. That shift opens the door to the abstraction that dominates 20th-century art.

### [Die Brücke (Unit 4)](/ap-art-history/key-terms/die-brucke)

Cassatt borrowing from Japanese prints and German Expressionists borrowing from African and Oceanic art are two chapters of the same story. Late 19th and early 20th-century European artists kept looking outside Europe to break academic conventions.

## On the AP Exam

Cassatt shows up two ways. In multiple choice, questions about The Coiffure ask you to identify the Japanese influence (flattened perspective, elevated viewpoint, bold contour lines) and then connect it to the broader phenomenon of Japonisme and cross-cultural exchange in late 19th-century Europe. The skill being tested isn't naming features, it's explaining what those features are evidence OF. In free response, Cassatt is a strong choice for prompts about cultural influence. The 2021 long essay asked you to identify a 19th or 20th-century European or American painting, drawing, or print influenced by another culture and explain that influence, and Cassatt's The Coiffure fits perfectly. If you use her, give a complete identification (artist, title, c. 1890-91, drypoint and aquatint) and then explain specifically which Japanese conventions she adopted and why she had access to them.

## Cassatt vs Berthe Morisot

Both were women Impressionists painting intimate domestic scenes of women and children, so they blur together fast. The split to remember is that Cassatt was American, worked closely with Degas, and is the one tied to Japanese-influenced printmaking through The Coiffure. Morisot was French and is not in the AP required image set. On the exam, 'Japonisme + printmaking + American' should point you straight to Cassatt.

## Key Takeaways

- Mary Cassatt was an American Impressionist painter and printmaker who worked in Paris and exhibited with the Impressionists at Degas's invitation.
- Her print The Coiffure (c. 1890-91, drypoint and aquatint) adopts flattened space, bold outlines, and an elevated viewpoint from Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock prints.
- Cassatt is the AP's clearest example of Japonisme, the late 19th-century European fascination with Japanese art that followed Japan's opening to Western trade.
- She supports LO 4.1.B (interactions with other cultures affect art making) and LO 4.1.A, since gender norms limited her to domestic subjects and shaped her art.
- On an FRQ about cross-cultural influence, fully identify The Coiffure and explain the specific Japanese conventions she borrowed, not just that she 'liked Japanese art.'

## FAQs

### Who was Mary Cassatt in AP Art History?

Mary Cassatt (1844-1926) was an American Impressionist painter and printmaker who worked in Paris. Her print The Coiffure (c. 1890-91) appears in Unit 4 as a key example of Japanese influence on Western art.

### Was Mary Cassatt French?

No. Cassatt was American, born in Pennsylvania, though she spent most of her career in Paris and exhibited with the French Impressionists. The exam often flags her as an American Impressionist precisely because that detail trips people up.

### Why was Mary Cassatt influenced by Japanese prints?

After Japan was opened to Western trade in the 1850s, ukiyo-e woodblock prints flooded Europe, and a major 1890 Paris exhibition inspired Cassatt's print series. She adopted their flattened space, bold contours, elevated viewpoints, and everyday subjects in works like The Coiffure.

### How is Cassatt different from Berthe Morisot?

Both were women Impressionists painting domestic scenes, but Cassatt was American, was mentored by Degas, and made the Japanese-influenced prints tested on the AP exam. Morisot was French and her work is not in the required image set.

### Is Mary Cassatt on the AP Art History exam?

Yes. The Coiffure is in the required image set under Unit 4, and Cassatt is a strong artist choice for FRQs about cross-cultural influence, like the 2021 long essay on 19th and 20th-century artists influenced by other cultures.

## Related Study Guides

- [4.1 Interactions Within and Across Cultures in Later European and American Art](/ap-art-history/unit-4/cultural-interactions-later-european-american-art/study-guide/vEcHWhEN09tXkjUbjKFq)

## Structured Data

```json
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"LearningResource","@id":"https://fiveable.me/ap-art-history/key-terms/cassatt#resource","name":"Mary Cassatt — AP Art History Definition & Exam Guide","url":"https://fiveable.me/ap-art-history/key-terms/cassatt","learningResourceType":"Concept explainer","educationalLevel":"AP® / High School","about":{"@id":"https://fiveable.me/ap-art-history/key-terms/cassatt#term"},"audience":{"@type":"EducationalAudience","educationalRole":"student"},"dateModified":"2026-06-11T05:27:01.398Z","isPartOf":{"@type":"Collection","name":"AP Art History Key Terms","url":"https://fiveable.me/ap-art-history/key-terms"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Fiveable","url":"https://fiveable.me"}},{"@type":"DefinedTerm","@id":"https://fiveable.me/ap-art-history/key-terms/cassatt#term","name":"Cassatt","description":"Mary Cassatt (1844-1926) was an American Impressionist painter and printmaker working in Paris whose drypoint-and-aquatint print The Coiffure (c. 1890-91) borrows flattened space, bold outlines, and elevated viewpoints from Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock prints, making her a model example of cross-cultural influence in AP Art History Topic 4.1.","url":"https://fiveable.me/ap-art-history/key-terms/cassatt","inDefinedTermSet":{"@type":"DefinedTermSet","name":"AP Art History Key Terms","url":"https://fiveable.me/ap-art-history/key-terms"}},{"@type":"FAQPage","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Who was Mary Cassatt in AP Art History?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Mary Cassatt (1844-1926) was an American Impressionist painter and printmaker who worked in Paris. Her print The Coiffure (c. 1890-91) appears in Unit 4 as a key example of Japanese influence on Western art."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Was Mary Cassatt French?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"No. Cassatt was American, born in Pennsylvania, though she spent most of her career in Paris and exhibited with the French Impressionists. The exam often flags her as an American Impressionist precisely because that detail trips people up."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Why was Mary Cassatt influenced by Japanese prints?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"After Japan was opened to Western trade in the 1850s, ukiyo-e woodblock prints flooded Europe, and a major 1890 Paris exhibition inspired Cassatt's print series. She adopted their flattened space, bold contours, elevated viewpoints, and everyday subjects in works like The Coiffure."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"How is Cassatt different from Berthe Morisot?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Both were women Impressionists painting domestic scenes, but Cassatt was American, was mentored by Degas, and made the Japanese-influenced prints tested on the AP exam. Morisot was French and her work is not in the required image set."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Is Mary Cassatt on the AP Art History exam?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Yes. The Coiffure is in the required image set under Unit 4, and Cassatt is a strong artist choice for FRQs about cross-cultural influence, like the 2021 long essay on 19th and 20th-century artists influenced by other cultures."}}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"AP Art History","item":"https://fiveable.me/ap-art-history"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Key Terms","item":"https://fiveable.me/ap-art-history/key-terms"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Unit 4","item":"https://fiveable.me/ap-art-history/unit-4"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"Cassatt"}]}]}
```