Eva Gonzalès and Morning Awakening

'Morning Awakening' (1876) by Eva Gonzalès; Kunsthalle Bremen, Bremen

Today's painter Eva Gonzalès, born on April 19, 1849, is unknown to me and one of the few female painters who were part of the circle of Impressionists. She was born into a family of artists, her father a writer and her mother a musician. She became Édouard Manet's only formal student and model. Although she never exhibited with the Impressionists in Paris, she is considered to be one of the group because of her painting style. She was strongly influenced by Manet at first, but after 1872, she began to develop her own personal style. There were several paintings that I could have chosen for this post, but this painting of a morning awakening stood out because of the light and the peaceful scene. Gonzalès portrayed her sister Jeanne in this painting, a lovely woman who just woke up and seems to be daydreaming.