Portrait of Suzanne Valadon (1865-1938), aged 20

Suzanne Valadon (23 September 1865 – 7 April 1938), was a notable model and artist. She was also the mother of the painter Maurice Utrillo. She is seen here sitting on a chair whilst holding a violet flower in her left hand, turning her back on the viewer. A preparatory sketch (fig. 1) for the present composition is in the Louvre's collections (RF 1977 106, AM 3397), currently held by the Musée d'Orsay, Paris.
Known to be a seductive, provocative and voluptuous model, Suzanne sat for many artists such as Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Pierre-Cécile Puvis de Chavannes and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. She became the first woman painter to enter the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts. Her good friend, Edgar Degas was one of those who encouraged and helped her by purchasing many of her works.