Mary Cassatt (1845-1926) American artist who enrolled
at the age of 15 at the Philadelphia Academy of Fine Arts.
From 1890-1910 she was very productive focusing primarily
on portraits of mothers and children. She gave up painting
with the outbreak of World War I.

At the 3rd annual meeting of the National Congress of Mothers
two speakers dominated the platform. Dr.Luther Emmett Holt,
America's best known pediatrician had a book out, The Care and
Feeding of Children, that was selling very well. He exhorted the
attendees to rely on science and its professionals as concerning
child nutrition.
    Dr. G. Stanley Hall, who held the first psychology doctorate
in the country, was the president of Clark University and spoke
twice on 'child study.' He said, "the study of children...enriches
parenthood, brings the adult and child nearer together."
    Both experts espoused a scientific approach to childrearing
that involved reliance on experts and research. The two experts
presented widely different opinions on parenting.

Little Girl in Blue Armchair was completed in 1878.
The little girl was the daughter of a friend of Degas
who had befriended Cassatt. Degas advised Cassatt
on the piece even helping her paint the background.