Arcadópolis
Henri Degas and His Niece Lucie Degas
Edgar Degas, 1875–1876
What you see
Henri Degas, a balding man with a grey moustache, sits in an armchair with an open newspaper in one hand and the other at his chin. He looks out at us. On the right, standing behind the chair, Lucie rests her hands on its back and gazes at us too, unsmiling. Behind them is a window glowing yellow, with a fireplace on the left.
Both are dressed in black, and their pale faces stand out against the yellowish background. The white newspaper, painted in broad strokes, is the brightest patch in the picture. Notice the girl’s white collar, and the round table in the foreground with a book and papers.
About Edgar Degas
Edgar Degas is famous for his ballet dancers, whom he painted in classes, rehearsals and backstage more than a thousand times. He liked to capture movements of a single instant, as if they were photographs. Besides oil paint, he often used pastels, sticks of colour that give a soft, velvety look.
More by Edgar Degas
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