Degas as a Perfectionist

    Edgar Degas is best known for his work in the impressionist movement and more specifically his paintings of dancers. Degas has created many portraits of ballet dancers, and even more sketches and studies to accompany them. This exhibit looks at what his process is behind his frequent choice of subject matter and how we can see his perfectionism through his revision process. Degas’s artistic process is filled with a constant use of editing, revision being something he talks about often in his letters, and there is lots of evidence of it in his work. This exhibit looks at some artworks he edited, revised, and even completely started over, showing us Degas’ perfectionism face to face with his choice of subject matter; ballerinas- girls who are stressed to perform with perfectly pointed toes and elegantly extended arms. Their very role is to make perfect look easy, is that what Degas is trying to do too? 

    It was more than just the training and rehearsal of ballerinas that Degas depicted. His interest was mostly in their rest. After all, in how many of these paintings do we see the majority of the girls depicted actually dancing? It is the spontaneous, natural gestures that Degas chooses to depict to show dancers as they are naturally, not how we are used to seeing them up on stage. 

     As you look through this collection of Degas’ dancers, observe the carefully crafted composition of each piece and imagine the process of Degas perfecting each pose and the position of each dancer to balance his pieces and make them visually interesting. Imagine a process that takes a long time, changing the angle of this arm here or editing out an entire piece of furniture because it throws off the balance. Put yourself in the shoes of the perfectionist Edgar Degas. 

Edgar Degas, The Dancing Class, oil on wood, c.1870, The Met Accession Number: 29.100.184

This piece is the first artwork Degas made of ballet dancers. The sessions that allowed for this painting to be created yielded many large study drawings, and in fact Degas had to hire posers to fill in because he was not actually allowed behind the scenes to see the dancers. Notice the role of the instrument case on the floor, acting as an implied line, bringing our eyes full circle around the painting. Observe the balance created in the ground by it. If the case were not there, would this piece remain balanced? Does the same go for the ballerina on the far right leaning against the wall? These are all questions that Degas was asking and coming up with his own answers for, with the end goal of creating a well balanced piece in both subject matter and form. 

Edgar Degas, The Dance Class, oil on canvas, ca. on view at the Musée d’Orsay Accession number: RF 1976

While Degas started this piece in 1973, he technically finishes it after he starts and finishes a second version of The Dance Class, which he made for commission for Jean-Baptiste Faure. In this piece, Jules Perrot stands at what looks like the center of the room, but is to the right of the canvas. He is observing the dancer in the center, the only one in this scene that appears to actually be dancing. Take careful notice of how the heads of all the ballerinas and adults in the room follow along the same horizontal line, and how the floor leads you back into the room, drawing you in as a viewer. Degas returned to finish this version of the painting in 1876. Degas engages the ground in this painting to include us as a viewer.

Edgar Degas, The Dance Class, oil on canvas, ca. 1874, the Met Accession Number: 1987.47.1

This painting is the second variation of its type, although it was started after the other piece, Degas starts and finishes this one before he takes back up his first variation. Degas makes this piece on commission for Jean-Baptiste Faure. As compared to the other of its type, the heads of the ballerinas align diagonally across the room, drawing the viewer in. The visually heavy items in the lower left corner help to ground the painting. Notice again the lack of very many dancers actually dancing, as we see some fluffing tutus, while others are tying their ribbons, or warming up.

Edgar Degas, The Rehearsal of the Ballet Onstage, Oil colors freely mixed with turpentine, with traces of watercolor and pastel over pen-and-ink drawing on cream-colored wove paper, laid down on bristol board and mounted on canvas, ca. 1874, the Met Accession Number: 29.160.26

As compared to the second version of this piece, this one was created in a more secure sense, giving us reason to believe that it was created first. Notice how Degas uses the implied lines of the dancers gazes and limbs to shift our gaze around the canvas. While the differences between this and the second version are hard to notice right away, this piece is a perfect example of Degas’ revision process, as we notice the small edits he made in the position of the scrolls of the instruments towards the bottom left of the canvas and the dancers he edits out. This piece and its pair are a great example to see Degas’ perfectionism first hand. 

Edgar Degas, The Rehearsal Onstage, Pastel over brush-and-ink drawing on thin cream-colored wove paper, laid down on bristol board and mounted on canvas, ca. 1874, the Met Accession Number: 29.100.39

The free flowing style of this piece gives us reason to think it was created after its variation. While at first glance these paintings appear very similar, notice how Degas activates the space differently in this piece. He omits a ballerina on the far left and now we better see the girl fiddling with her bracelets. By placing her with her back to us, it invites the viewer into the canvas, almost as if inviting them to come stand next to the subject. An instrument’s scroll pokes into our view and works to ground the painting, reinforcing the idea that the scene is not limited to just what we can see here. Relaxed ballerinas seems to find their safe haven in this painting, where we see one girl scratching her back, another yawning, one fixing her slipper, and the girl on the far left fiddling with her bracelets. 

  Edgar Degas, Dancers Practicing at the Barre, ca. 1874, the Met Accession Number: 29.100.34

This piece makes for an interesting look at how balance works in artwork. While the watering can does make visual sense in the context of the painting, as dancers would sprinkle water on the ground to prevent dust from kicking up, it also provides visual grounding. If the watering can were not there, would the painting remain well balanced? If the watering can were, say, an instrument case, would it have the same effect? Do you see how Degas is poking fun at the stance of the dancers by mimicking their movements and positions with the shape of the watering can? This piece shows the way Degas played around in his studies, perfecting his craft and use of balance but finding his own comic relief along the way.