Walker Art Gallery has acquired a painting by Marie Bracquemond (1840-1916) through the generous support of The Rick Mather David Scrase Foundation. La pêche aux écrevisses (Crayfish fishing), painted about 1870-1880, represents the first painting by Marie Bracquemond to enter a public collection in the UK.

Marie Bracquemond was one of only three women who participated in the original Impressionist exhibitions, alongside Mary Cassatt and Berthe Morisot. Art critic Gustave Geffroy famously described these artists as “les trois grandes dames” (the three great ladies) of Impressionism in 1894. The acquisition reinforces the Walker’s reputation as a gallery which has historically celebrated women artists and ensures that the stories of pioneering women artists continue to be told.

In her early career, Bracquemond exhibited at the prestigious Paris Salon and studied art under the Neoclassical painter Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres. She later became a copyist at the Louvre where she met Félix Bracquemond, a painter and engraver, whom she married in 1869. Between 1877 and 1880, under the influence of Impressionism, Marie Bracquemond’s style shifted from traditional, academic painting. She became intrigued by colour and began to work “en plein air” (outdoors). Bracquemond exhibited in the Impressionist exhibitions of 1879, 1880, and 1886, at the invitation of Edgar Degas. Her husband, Félix, strongly opposed her move towards Impressionism. According to their son, Pierre, Félix was jealous of his wife, and his harsh criticism eventually led Marie to abandon her professional painting career in 1890.

La pêche aux écrevisses demonstrates Bracquemond’s delicate and skilful handling of paint. The charming subject matter shows a young woman fishing for a crayfish, with children playing in the background. It reflects the Impressionist interest in capturing everyday scenes, particularly outdoors. In typical Impressionist style, the quick brushwork creates a sense of movement, particularly through the woman’s flowing hat band, the water dripping from the crayfish, and the frolicking children. Bracquemond was also fascinated by white and how sunlight interacted with it outdoors. This can be seen here in the dappled treatment of the woman’s pale dress.

Kate O’Donoghue, Curator of International Fine Art at National Museums Liverpool, said:

“This acquisition represents a significant moment for Walker Art Gallery and for the recognition of women artists associated with the Impressionist movement. Marie Bracquemond was one of only three women who exhibited in the original Impressionist exhibitions, yet her promising career was cut short due to her husband’s disapproval.

“We are proud to bring Bracquemond’s work to our visitors as the first UK public collection to acquire one of her paintings. We are extremely grateful to the Rick Mather David Scrase Foundation for their generosity and for helping to continue the Walker’s tradition of championing women artists whose stories deserve to be told.”

Walker Art Gallery holds an outstanding collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art, which includes works by Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, Paul Cézanne, and Henri Matisse. The gallery’s Impressionist collection has benefitted from other significant acquisitions in recent years, including Claude Monet’s L’Epte à Giverny and Edgar Degas’s pastel, Modiste garnissant un chapeau in 2024. This is the first work by a woman associated with the original French Impressionist movement to enter the Walker’s collection.

La pêche aux écrevisses is now on display in Room 9 at Walker Art Gallery.

Admission is free, with donations welcome.