The Fitting [recto] 1890 - 1891

Mary Cassatt made this drawing, "The Fitting," on paper using graphite. It is deceptively simple. With a few well-placed lines, Cassatt captures a scene of dressmaking, a distinctly gendered space, and a critical node in the fashion industry. The ephemeral quality of the sketch belies the labor involved in the scene. The dressmaker, hunched over her work, is the unseen engine of the image. We can imagine her skill, the hours of stitching, the intimate knowledge of fabric and form required to bring a garment into being. The dress itself, still in progress, hints at the complex social dynamics of clothing. Fashion is not just about beauty. It is about class, status, and the performance of identity. Cassatt, with her deft handling of line, reminds us that even the simplest sketch can speak volumes about the world of work, and the ways in which we dress ourselves within it.