Hilaire-Germain-Edgar De Gas or Edgar Degas (1834 — 1917) — French impressionist artist, master of pastels, whose work is usually associated with images of various dancers and ballerinas. Degas was indeed a great fan of the theater and ballet, every year for 20 years he bought a subscription to the Paris Grand Opera, and depicted what he saw in his impressive pastels. But unlike other artists, for example, his contemporary Jean-Louis Forain, Degas did not choose only the most attractive angles and refused to stage scenes. His pastels are somewhat reminiscent of photographs, Degas recorded the moment here and now, captured an instant through a virtuoso transfer of movements.
Blue dancers
The work "Blue Dancers" is also like this, which is in the Pushkin Museum. The girls crowded before going on stage and put the finishing touches on their costumes. Degas managed to convey the features of artificial lighting very well, although he used pastel rather than the usual oil.
Ballet school
By the way, he discovered the possibilities of this material in a new way, since self-respecting artists usually did not paint with pastels because of their fragility and tendency to fade. Degas processed his pastels with steam, and sometimes mixed them with hot water, obtaining a kind of gruel resembling thick paint. But this measure was forced, Degas's eyesight was getting worse with each passing year, and the tangibility of pastels allowed him to continue painting at the same level.
Dance lesson
However, the life of the dancers in Degas' works was never limited to the ceremonial side; he painted how they rehearsed, prepared for performances, and even carried out hygiene procedures. "You know how they pose in Degas's works," wrote one dancer: "he invites you to the studio, you undress and wash your bottom, and he carefully sketches it all." Such is the painting "Bass," where Degas turned to his favorite theme of the naked female body.
Pelvis
His works are completely devoid of sensuality and eroticism, Degas departed from all the usual canons, it was more important for him to convey movement, not beauty, and, in the artist's opinion, it was best to capture him while washing. By the way, Degas's gaze is absolutely detached and indifferent, he simply records what is happening, without trying to reflect his attitude to what is happening.
Spartan girls challenge young men to a competition. 1860
But Degas also had a very unusual oil painting on a historical theme. He captured Spartan girls and boys training and egging each other on. They are depicted in the foreground, and the girls themselves are the instigators here, challenging five young men nearby. That is, in fact, they violated all the norms of decency accepted in the second half of the 19th century, when girls were supposed to behave modestly and certainly not challenge men.
Young Spartans in training. Sketch. 1860
The painting is multifaceted - behind the youth are adults, watching them very carefully. It is believed that these are the mothers of the young men and women, who are standing next to the famous Spartan politician Lycurgus, the author of very peculiar Spartan laws.
Behind them is the city of Sparta, and a little to the left is Mount Taygetos, from where, according to legend, the frail and weak Spartan babies were thrown.
Degas repeatedly repainted this painting and worked on it throughout his life, since he was a true perfectionist and always strived for perfection, making endless edits. His friends joked that the only way to make Degas completely finish a painting was to take it away from him. But this painting, it seems, was never taken away, so there is a strange mistake on it: four girls have 10 legs. That is, there should be a fifth girl, but for some reason Degas never depicted her, or maybe he just did not paint over the extra legs.
Young Spartans in Training. Second version of the painting, located at the Art Institute of Chicago
Degas changed their faces, depicting ordinary young Parisian boys and girls instead of the classical ancient Greek profile. Perhaps this was some attempt to modernize the painting, to give it the necessary liveliness and closeness for the viewers, so that the Spartans depicted in it would seem not abstract historical figures, but ordinary people.
In fact, the only historical realities there are the unusual clothes of the youth, or rather, the lack of clothes for the young men and only loincloths for the girls. According to the concepts of that time, all this is clearly bad manners, and even now some art critics look askance at the painting, calling it completely unacceptable for general display in the London National Gallery. But while their opinion is not taken into account, it is for the best, after all, real art is not censored, otherwise a significant part of the masterpieces of painting and sculpture will have to be removed from the permanent exhibition.
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