Edgar Degas by: Mason Petrancosta
Edgar Degas was a French Impressionist painter and sculptor; he lived form 1834 to 1917. Degas had studied briefly at the School of Fine Arts Paris
Degas was the first of the Impressionists to achieve public acclaim. That can be attributed to the fact that his works were clearer, and less distant from the mainstream. In the early 1960’s Degas developed an attraction to painting theatrical subjects, and he would try to depict his subjects as he saw them in theaters, cafes, music halls, rehearsal halls, drawing rooms, or boudoirs. Degas frequently focused his works around horse races, women bathing, and ballet dancers. Degas loved to observe humanity, and he would try to depict his subjects in natural spontaneous poses, much like photographs did. (Edgar Degas, 2008) (Cooper)However, the poses in his art were far from spontaneous. Unlike most Impressionists, Degas made many sketches before he started to paint, and he would carefully consider the gesture, poses, and the placement of each figure. Degas varied in a many other ways from many Impressionists. For one, he hated working outdoors, and instead preferred to work inside his studio, in fact in his later years he would paint many of the dancers in his pieces from memory. He had almost no interest in landscapes, but instead concentrated on the human figure. The biggest way he differed from traditional Impressionists was that he lacked a fascination with natural light and its effects. Degas also tried experimental techniques. One of these was that he would paint combining pastels and tempera paint. He increasingly used pastels, especially starting in the late 1880’s. This was because he started going blind around that time, and pastels were easier to use than oil paint. As his eyesight continued to decline he started to make sculptures from wax, often focusing on his usual subjects. Wax was easy for him to work with because it is a very malleable substance. Some of his wax sculptures were cast in bronze after his death in 1917.
Edgar Degas is one of the most acclaimed and well known of the Impressionists. Throughout his life he managed to create countless masterpieces. Many of his art pieces are still enjoyed around the world today and most likely will continue to be.
Works Cited
Degas was the first of the Impressionists to achieve public acclaim. That can be attributed to the fact that his works were clearer, and less distant from the mainstream. In the early 1960’s Degas developed an attraction to painting theatrical subjects, and he would try to depict his subjects as he saw them in theaters, cafes, music halls, rehearsal halls, drawing rooms, or boudoirs. Degas frequently focused his works around horse races, women bathing, and ballet dancers. Degas loved to observe humanity, and he would try to depict his subjects in natural spontaneous poses, much like photographs did. (Edgar Degas, 2008) (Cooper)However, the poses in his art were far from spontaneous. Unlike most Impressionists, Degas made many sketches before he started to paint, and he would carefully consider the gesture, poses, and the placement of each figure. Degas varied in a many other ways from many Impressionists. For one, he hated working outdoors, and instead preferred to work inside his studio, in fact in his later years he would paint many of the dancers in his pieces from memory. He had almost no interest in landscapes, but instead concentrated on the human figure. The biggest way he differed from traditional Impressionists was that he lacked a fascination with natural light and its effects. Degas also tried experimental techniques. One of these was that he would paint combining pastels and tempera paint. He increasingly used pastels, especially starting in the late 1880’s. This was because he started going blind around that time, and pastels were easier to use than oil paint. As his eyesight continued to decline he started to make sculptures from wax, often focusing on his usual subjects. Wax was easy for him to work with because it is a very malleable substance. Some of his wax sculptures were cast in bronze after his death in 1917.
Edgar Degas is one of the most acclaimed and well known of the Impressionists. Throughout his life he managed to create countless masterpieces. Many of his art pieces are still enjoyed around the world today and most likely will continue to be.
Works Cited
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