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French artist Edgar Degas (1834-1917) has a reputation as one of art’s great misogynists. Yet he ardently supported the careers of women impressionists, and his own art depicted working-class women with unusual dignity for the time.
Degas was a founder of the impressionist movement alongside painters like Monet and Renoir, though Degas preferred to call himself a "realist" instead. He worked obsessively to capture how women’s bodies moved in space. But his fixation on the female form wasn’t rooted in attraction. A lifelong bachelor, Degas displayed little interest in romantic relationships with anyone, regardless of gender.
Departing from artistic norms of the day, Degas’ art didn’t necessarily present women and girls as objects of desire. For instance, artists in his time typically portrayed ballet dancers as coquettish, seductive, and welcoming of male attention. Meanwhile, Degas’ paintings and drawings of the young girls in the Paris Opera Ballet send a very different message. Degas’ work focused on the stark realities these working-class girls faced: their hard-earned athletic ability, the brutal working conditions they endured, and their frequent sexual exploitation at the hands of wealthy patrons.
When Degas exhibited his sculpture Little Dancer Aged Fourteen, critics reacted with outrage at the jarringly realistic depiction of a young teenage girl's defiant stance and pubescent awkwardness.
Another frequent subject for Degas was nude women: lumbering out of the bathtub, toweling themselves off, crouching in unflattering positions. Several times, he compared these models to animals cleaning themselves, leading some scholars to conclude he dehumanized them. Others argue the opposite: that his work emphasizes women’s humanity by showing them existing in a natural state instead of performing for the viewer’s gratification.
Unlike many of his male colleagues, Degas didn’t discredit women artists on account of their gender. He introduced multiple women into the impressionist circle, such as Berthe Morisot and Marie Bracquemond. Most notably, he maintained a decades-long friendship with American painter Mary Cassatt, whose work he collected extensively.
While Degas’ attitude toward women has been debated, it’s certain that he held other bigoted beliefs. As he aged, he became increasingly antisemitic, shunning Jewish friends and colleagues such as impressionist Camille Pissarro.
A man of many contradictions, Degas challenged some inequities while directly enforcing others. Human beings are flawed and complicated—and, as Degas’ life shows us, renowned artists are no exception.
Edgar Degas was a French artist famous for his paintings, sculptures, prints, and drawings. He is especially identified with the subject of dance; more than half of his works depict dancers. Wikipedia
Born: July 19, 1834, Paris, France
Died: September 27, 1917, Paris, France
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Degas is primarily recognized for his depictions of the human form, which is part of what makes this landscape painting so fascinating. He is able to imbue the houses and cliffs with a certain haunting beauty, much like he does with his human figures. --> http://ow.ly/e811309E5aD #art
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