The Cradle
Berthe Morisot (1872)
Berthe Morisot’s The Cradle turns a quiet nursery into a scene of <strong>vigilant love</strong>. A gauzy veil, lifted by the watcher’s hand, forms a <strong>protective boundary</strong> that cocoons the sleeping child in light while linking the two figures through a decisive diagonal <sup>[1]</sup><sup>[2]</sup>. The painting crystallizes modern maternity as a form of attentiveness rather than display—an <strong>unsentimental icon</strong> of care.
