 |
|
"Art is not what you see, but what you make others see."
Degas believed so, and he had never disappointed the viewers, his art-lovers.
The Painter of Dance and Dancers, Edgar Degas, was born in 1934
in France. This French artist had become a student of classical art
at an early age. He continued experimenting with sculpture and printmaking
throughout his life, but his area of occupation remained painting.
Though regarded as one of the founders of impressionists like Renoir, Degas
preferred to be known as a realist painter. Edgar Degas was known for his
paintings depicting movements of the objects he painted. He painted the
dancers; he painted women models showing dance movements, and he
painted running horses.
Art of Degas Degas was well-known for his
pastel paintings. We can call Edgar Degas a painter of the moments;
the moments that would make a painting memorable; a moment that would make a
painting telling us the story happening around the characters painted. Edgar
Degas became famous for his exceptional skill in portrait painting. His
portraits became some of the finest portraits in the history of
art. Unlike many other artists who painted portraits for their clients,
Degas introduced some novel features in his portraits.
 |
| Portrait of a young woman Edgar Degas Oil on Canvas Musee d'Orsay, Paris |
Degas believed that while portraying a person his or her social status must be felt by the viewers. Moreover, the seat of employment of the person portrayed should occupy the prominence on the frame. If these features are incorporated into the portrait, the viewers can have a genuine idea about the person portrayed.
While looking
at the portraits painted by Degas, we realise that he had applied this concept
in his portraits. He did this by depicting the physical appearances and the
attitude-packed postures of the sitter. He used to minutely observe the style
and qualities of dresses and other attributes.
The Indoor Impressionist Unlike other impressionist painters of his time and the other artists
with whom he worked, Edgar Degas preferred working indoors. He depended upon
his memory and the models he called to appear in his studio. In the case
of landscapes, too, he had repeated the subjects very often, doing a certain
variation of colour scheme here or the positioning the subjects there. That's
what the master artists often do.
In his paintings, in addition to
preoccupied with the dance scenes, he was inclined to paint and draw the
subjects that performed the actions, the act on a moment. The painting of
the moments, that too on pastels, was the field that had remained relatively untouched
by any artist of Edgar’s calibre; and this field, along with his rapport with
the circus and the dancers provided him with rich resources to paint.
 |
| Singer with a Glove Edgar Degas Pastel on Paper Fog Museum, Harward |
Painting Moments of Joy and Movement Edgar Degas a student of classical art at an early age was born in 1934 in France. He became a famous artist for his diverse artistic prowess. In addition to doing the painting, he continued experimenting with sculpture and printing making throughout his life.
However, Degas's main area
of occupation remained drawing and painting. Though regarded as one of the
founders of the impressionism movement, along with the painters like Renoir and
others, Degas preferred to be known as a realist painter of his time.
Range of pastel colours: Patel colours provide us with a long index of choices: warm red,
cold red, orange, cold yellow, warm green, cold green, cold blue, warm blue,
cold and warm violet.
This painting, Singer with a Glove, is a
famous masterpiece. This pastel on paper, the original masterpiece was
painted in 1878. In his paintings, in addition to preoccupied with the
dancing and singing scenes, he was inclined to paint and draw the subjects
depicting the action of a moment. This field was relatively untouched by
any artist of Edgar’s calibre. It provided him with rich resources in finding
the subjects to paint.
 |
| Dancer Edgar Degas Pastel on Paper Musee d'Orsay, Paris |
"In art, nothing should look
like chance, not even a movement."–Edgar Degas
Degas was not from the clan of the artists who maintained their families
from the income received from sale proceeds of paintings. He was from a wealthy
family. You know, to get the means for survival is the main hurdle for most
artists.
Though being a member of the impressionist group, Degas honoured the
convention of line drawing and marking out the figures clearly. For
Degas, the painting was the study of conventions. Being a master in re-creating
the movements of the objects being painted, he did several artworks depicting
the horses and dancers. He studied in Italy, and his
understanding of the paintings displayed at the Louvre helped him turning
himself into an artist of precision and unmatched greatness.
 |
| Dance hall at the Opéra on rue Le Peletier Edgar Degas Oil on Canvas Musée d'Orsay, Paris |
Look at the above painting. It reflects several things attached to the art of painting. After drawing the figures or marking the spaces for objects, for an artist, it would necessary to think about the relationship. The interpersonal relationship of the figures to be painted on canvas. It is like an interrelationship of the art qua the artist.
Then there is an interrelationship with the object, too. The inter-relationship of the objects generates a feeling of something happening or watching an event. Then there come the compositional aspects. The compositional aptitude of the artist would generate a strong interest of the viewers in the final product, the painting. Degas had mastered these subtle aspects of the painting, too. [All images are in Public Domain, taken from Wikimedia Commons]
No comments:
Post a Comment