It was natural for Berthe Morisot to concern herself with the artistic education of the young girls in her entourage. The firstborn of her nieces, Paule Gobillard was no doubt the most dedicated and enthusiastic of her students. Having worked at the Louvre under her aunt’s supervision, Paule obtained her first card as a copyist in 1886. Berthe probably dedicated this picture to her in recognition of this achievement. The twentyyear- old woman poses as a painter in Rue de Villejust. In profile, she is holding her palette in one hand and in the other the brush with which she is painting on the canvas that we gather is on the far left of the panel. Unlike the many other portraits for which Paule posed, notably in a ball gown, this one was never exhibited in Morisot’s lifetime, nor even in the model’s. A gift from an aunt to her niece, from the master to her pupil, it remained in the family sphere, for which it was intended, until 1961.