Degas << duh GAH >>, Edgar (1834-1917), was a French impressionist painter. Like the other impressionists, he wanted to portray situations from modern life. However, he did not share his fellow impressionists’ concentration on light and color. Degas emphasized composition, drawing, and form more than did the other members of the movement. See Impressionism.
Degas is best known for his paintings of people in both public and unguarded private moments. He showed his figures in awkward or informal positions to free himself from what he felt were outmoded styles of portraying the human body. But he composed his pictures carefully both for formal balance and to indicate the social interaction of his figures.
Hilaire Germain Edgar Degas was born on July 19, 1834, in Paris of wealthy parents. From 1854 to 1859, he spent much time in Italy studying the great Italian Renaissance painters to perfect his draftsmanship and style. Degas intended to become a painter of historical scenes, but he abandoned this career because he felt a need to paint modern subjects. Probably under the influence of the painters Gustave Courbet and Édouard Manet, Degas began to paint scenes from everyday life. He especially enjoyed painting pictures of race-track and theatrical life.
During the 1870’s, Degas began to use daring compositional techniques, partly influenced by Japanese prints. He placed his figures at unusual angles and used odd visual viewpoints. For example, he tilted his perspective to emphasize a sudden or informal movement by a figure. He even cut off parts of the subjects at the edge of the picture. In the 1880’s, Degas started to concentrate on intimate scenes, such as women bathing, shopping, or drying or combing their hair.
Degas painted many pictures in oil, but he also excelled in pastel. In addition, Degas was a fine sculptor and made many clay or wax figurines. He died on Sept. 27, 1917.
