Berthe Morisot
Berthe Marie Pauline Morisot
(January 1841 – March 1895)
The Cradle was painted in Paris in 1872. It shows one of the artist's sisters, Edma, watching over her sleeping daughter, Blanche.
The mother's gaze, her bent left arm, a mirror image of the child's arm, and the baby's closed eyes form a diagonal line which is further accentuated by the movement of the curtain in the background. This diagonal links the mother to her child. Edma's gesture, drawing the net curtain of the cradle between the spectator and the baby, further reinforces the feeling of intimacy and protective love expressed in the painting.