(Edgar Degas)

(Edgar Degas) (1834-1917), French painter, one of the most important and famous impressionists(see impressionism). In his work, propagandizing the rejection of academic salon art, Degas himself strove in his paintings for the maximum "naturalism". At the same time, his paintings have differences in style due to constant creative experiments. At the same time, based on the excellent school of drawing from traditional painting, Degas's works demonstrate accuracy and realism, which also distinguishes the artist's paintings from many impressionists.

The artist's father, Auguste de Gas, was the manager of the French branch of a bank founded in Italy by Edgar Degas' grandfather, Rene Hilaire de Gas (back in the days of flight from french revolution). The wealth of his father allowed Edgar to focus on education and creativity in his favorite business (he loved to draw from childhood). This focus on creativity shaped the young Degas as a perfectionist at work.

Towards the end of his life, Edgar Degas moves away from the Impressionists (even denying the very term "Impressionism"), distances himself from their society. Serious disease vision made him work, overcoming the difficulties of poor vision, which formed a special unique style his late works. Degas spent the last years of his life alone (perhaps because of his difficult nature), abandoning painting and stopping writing.

Paintings by Degas:

1870 - The Franco-Prussian War was approaching Paris. Together with Manet, Degas goes into the army. Degas volunteers for an infantry regiment. Soon a visual defect in the right eye (the onset of blindness) was discovered and Degas was transferred to the artillery, where he ended the war. 1871 - after the war, the artist visited London. 1872 - visits America and lived for several months in New Orleans, with his relatives (on the maternal side). 1873 - urgently returned to Paris, where his father died, leaving large debts. Keeping his family reputation, Degas spent his inheritance on payments, sold his house and the family collection of paintings by old masters. Left without funds, he is forced to engage in commercial creativity. 1874-1886 - Edgar Degas participates in seven exhibitions of the Impressionists. He became famous and respected in the Parisian art world. Sales agents agree to work with him, and Degas's paintings sell well at a high price. 1882 - the artist's eyesight begins to deteriorate sharply, and Degas begins experiments in the technique of drawing, and then moves on to sculpture. 1888 - Degas becomes a very accomplished commercial artist. Conducts effective strategy trades with a group of dedicated agents. And closes in a narrow circle of close friends. 1907 - Degas practically stops painting. His paintings are sold already during his lifetime and at fabulous prices.

Name: Edgar Degas

Age: 83 years old

Activity: painter, impressionist

Family status: not married

Edgar Degas: biography

A perfectionist, reaching in his works to a disarming harmony of forms and colors, Hilaire-Germain-Edgard de Gas is known to the world as a bright representative of the impressionist movement. That weightlessness and grace, which he showed to the world through the canvas, in fact, cannot be concluded within the framework of one specific direction.

Childhood and youth

The future artist was born on July 19, 1834 in the family of a successful banker. Father Augusto de Gas was the organizer of the Neapolitan trading house. Mother Celestine Musson was the daughter of a cotton exchange broker.

The head of the family supported his wife and children, and Celestina, as the guardian hearth, maintained comfort and order in the house. The mother died suddenly when the boy was not even 13 years old.

Edgar grew up as a capable child: he became interested in Latin and history. After graduating from the Ludwig the Great Lyceum in 1852, the young man entered the University of Paris at the Faculty of Law. However, the young man understands that jurisprudence is not his.

Augusto wanted his eldest son to be educated and follow in his footsteps, inheriting family business. Having learned about his son's intention to leave the university, he decides not to dominate his offspring, giving Edgar a choice.

Having received his father's blessing, in 1855 the young man entered the school of fine arts, where the mentor Lamotte instilled in the young man love for the leader of European academicism, J.D. Ingres.

Edgar was lucky to be born into a family of aristocrats. The guy never experienced difficulties associated with a lack of money. While other novice artists struggled with hunger and looked to the future with apprehension, the young man in 1856 decides to leave his studies and leaves for Spain for 2 years.

There a young man studies the main cultural centers countries - Florence, Naples, Rome, inspired by the paintings of the masters of the Renaissance.

The inspired young man, upon his return to Paris, opens a workshop, creating a number of works on historical plots.

Edgar boldly renounces idealization ancient life showing what she could be in modern interpretation. Despite titanic efforts and a great desire, Degas failed to combine antiquity and modernity as part of his work.

Acquaintance with, which happened in 1862, turned Degas' life upside down. The artist became a regular in the cozy cafe "Gerbois". There, ambitious impressionists discussed the concepts of new subjects in painting and their own vision of reality.

Under the influence of these people, at the end of 1860, a series of major works- "Washerwomen", "Race Races", "Ballet Scenes" and "Modistes". the main task artist - show inner world hero, in the look, in the movement of the hand, in the turn of the head, to fully be able to reveal the personality. Degas was fundamentally different from the Impressionists, he perceived the world How dynamic element being, without trying to isolate even a drop of inspiration from it. Edgar saw the ideal in the unceasing life of the metropolis. Photographic memory helped to notice the most insignificant features of Paris.

In the future, these memories helped to convey the rhythm of city life, creating detailed images of people, places and events.

Material well-being allowed Edgar to be in eternal search for himself. The painter violated the canons, experimented with light, form, mocked the composition - in general, he did everything possible and impossible so that the new vision created the effect of freshness of the work.

As a result of creative wanderings, the creator managed to achieve an accurate weathering of the compositional structure of the canvases, in which there was nothing more random. All elements emphasized the meaning of the plot.

Painting

Ballet was a favorite subject of the master of impressionism. The popularity of the ballet scenes captured by Degas is easy to explain: on his canvases, the artist masterfully shows the world of beauty and grace, without overloading the paintings with excessive sentimentality.

The theme of ballet appears in the work of many artists. To paint pictures, all as one used the services of eminent models. The play of chiaroscuro, the pose specially selected for the portrait - these nuances deprived the canvas of the soul. Degas was the first to dare to show the work of stage workers without embellishment.

Painting " blue dancers"Written by the artist's favorite pastel. Four ballerinas in blue ballet tutus in anticipation of going on stage, they find no place for themselves. Every day they act out the roles and every day they are worried, like before the debut. Looking at them, the viewer involuntarily empathizes with the heroines, feeling the same jitters. The asymmetry of the composition and the uneven cut of the edges speaks of the artist's passion for photography.

In addition to ballet, the painter was fond of horses. These graceful animals won the love of the creator when he was in Italy. Degas was a fan of traditional Roman horse racing. The artist was attracted by the natural plasticity of the horses, and the professional gestures of the riders aroused genuine delight in the artist.

The first picture of the cycle "racing" was born in 1860 and is called "Gentlemen at the races: before the start." This canvas is a copy of the style and character of the artist.

Fuzzy, vague riders are lost against the flat landscape. Degas rewrites this work 20 years later. In the later version, endless hills and factories became the background.

The work of Edgar Degas "Absinthe", raising the problem of alcoholism, fully reflects the mores of the Parisian bohemia of that time. The feeling of loneliness is best experienced together. The loss of hope is what unites these distant and at the same time close people. The faded color of the picture enhances the feeling of the insignificance of one's own being.

The painter did not want to embellish reality, giving the viewer the opportunity to see firsthand the realities that surround him.

One of the seminal works of the 19th century is the Place de la Concorde. At some point, the master had no money left and he had to take on the work of any plan. The master was forced to depict the viscount's family, and then sell the painting to him. This helped the artist earn the amount of money he needed to live. The painting was owned by L. Lepic for a long time. Nothing was known about her fate until the beginning of the 20th century.

After a while, the “Square of Concord” was discovered in the collection of the eminent owner art gallery P. Duran-Ruel. However, the lower part of the work was cut off. It was she who contained the artist's autograph. The absence of a signature made it difficult to identify the author. After long futile attempts to sell the masterpiece, finally, it was acquired by the German O. Gerstenberg.

The plot of the work is prosaic. Despite the imaginary calm, pallor of colors and smoothness of lines, the thought does not lie on the surface. Children and adults in the picture look in different sides. There is an eternal conflict between fathers and children. The reflected difference in the views and worldview of generations, as if in mockery, is called the "Square of Concord".

Degas knew how to surprise the viewer, forcing him to empathize with the hero depicted on the canvas. "Ironers" were no exception. A worker with a bottle of wine, exhausted from boredom and monotony, has become a symbol of the worker of the early twentieth century.

The exhaustion of the second woman is immediately evident. She does not stroke - she falls off her feet. She has neither the strength nor the desire to even raise her head. After all, all around is the same hopelessness and piles of linen. The maestro of impressionism allows people to see Paris from a different angle.

"Washerwomen" are harsh and realistic. Great master with a feeling of deep humanism belonged to the man of labor.

In the picture " Dance class» Degas phenomenally combines accurate drawing with sketchy details. The artist focuses on the facial expressions of the dancers. The picture plunges into an atmosphere of exciting anticipation. For students, this is a painful expectation, for an elderly choreographer, a palette of new ideas. But born ballerinas have no time for extraneous thoughts - they live by dancing, and a second of inactivity is like death. The classical color scheme gives the canvas an academic quality, but the energy of indifferent movement in space returns the viewer to the world of impressionism.

Personal life

people, not knowledgeable biography Degas, having briefly familiarized himself with his work, will consider that Edgar did not shy away from love affair with sitters. On the canvases of the colorist, images of naked women often appeared, but it is reliably known that the master did not have close relations with any of the muses.

A lover of wide-brimmed hats with eyes reflecting the sadness of the whole world, he preferred proud loneliness to noisy companies. The unsociable artist could not bear heightened attention to your person.

Because of such a detached lifestyle and habit of always muttering something under his breath, friends and relatives affectionately called him "bear".

Being a freedom-loving person, the painter had a negative attitude towards the institution of marriage. According to biographers, the melancholic perfectionist did not need physical intimacy. The sculptor loved with his eyes and took pleasure in contemplating the female body.

Suzanne Valadon, who repeatedly posed for the painter, stated: Degas constantly complimented her appearance, but physical contact was impossible. The genius of impressionism believed that a woman was created not for love, but for inspiration. The rapture was purely spiritual.

It is noteworthy that even after the publication of the series of works "Scenes in Closed Houses", dedicated to easily accessible women, no one doubted the master's purity for a split second.

The only acceptable state of the creator's soul is loneliness. He deliberately chose him as a faithful life partner.

Death

Were infinitely sad last years life of Degas. The blind genius, wandering aimlessly through the streets of Paris, was swallowed up by woeful pessimism. It was indescribably painful for him that he no longer had the opportunity to contemplate life, the movement of which he captured with his magic brush.

His friends came to say goodbye to a friend: and the artist Jean-Louis Forain.

It is known that Degas could not stand chatter. Therefore, during his lifetime, he asked Foren to abandon the mourning speech and end with a simple, uncomplicated phrase:

"He, like me, loved to draw."

Artworks

• "Study of Hands" (1860)
• "The Beginning of the Hunt" (1863-1865)
• "Riders on the road" (1864-1868)
• "Interior" (Violence) (1868-1869)
• "Coast at Ebbe" (1869-1870)
• "Dance class" (1871-1874)
• "Concord Square" (1875)
• "In the cafe" (absinthe) (1876)
• "Woman at the toilet" (1876-1877)
• "Diego Martelli" (1879)
• "Opera box" (1880)
• "Faces of Criminals" (1881)
• "Ironers" (1884)
• "IN dance studio» (1897)
• "Blue Dancers" (1899)
• "Ballerinas Backstage" (1900)

In the sixties XIX years century in France originated artistic direction, whose representatives, through their fleeting impressions of the world around them, sought to achieve a more natural and lively image of it. It received the name impressionism from the French word impression - impression. One of the brightest representatives of this trend was the artist whose works were discovered new page in world art.

Children's passion for drawing

Was born future artist in 1834 in Paris rich family who had aristocratic roots. His last name is spelled - de Ga (the particle "de" indicates noble origin), but at an older age, Edgar, under the influence of overflowing social ideas changed it to a more democratic one - Degas.

Passion for drawing, and later for painting, manifested itself in him in early age, but the father - the manager and co-owner of one of the large Parisian banks - not sharing his son's hobbies, prophesied the future of a lawyer for him. However, material security allowed young man does not care about and devote all his time to his favorite pastime. So it appeared early works. Edgar Degas, according to researchers, already at that time showed the makings of a future perfectionist, repeatedly rewriting his paintings and striving to bring them to perfection.

Passion for the work of Ingres, and the beginning of his studies

Biographers note that among the recognized masters of the brush, Jean had the greatest influence on Degas. August Ingres, before whose work he bowed all his life, which left a noticeable imprint on his own works. Edgar Degas at the age of twenty began painting in the workshop of one of the students of his idol - Louis Lamothe, now forgotten, and in those years widely known.

Living in Paris, Edgar spends a lot of time in the halls of the Louvre, where, copying the paintings of old masters, he tries to comprehend the secrets of their work. Having the financial opportunity to travel, he also visits the best museums in Italy, where he gets acquainted with the masterpieces of painting geniuses Italian Renaissance― Giotto, Ghirlandaio, Bellini, Mantegna and other artists who have become symbols greatest era in the visual arts.

First independent steps

Returning to Paris, Degas becomes the owner of his own workshop, in which he works mainly on the creation of portraits and canvases on historical theme. Even in Florence, he created many canvases, on which the young artist captured his Italian relatives, whose hospitality he enjoyed for several months. These works were evidence of the birth of a new master portrait painter.

However, in the early sixties, Degas focused on historical canvases with which he hopes to achieve fame and recognition. He paints a number of paintings on antique and medieval subjects, but they are not successful. This becomes the reason for talking about the failure of the artist in this genre.

Perhaps the only one truly mature picture, created by Degas at the turn of the sixties, can be considered a portrait of his Florentine relatives - the Belleli family, which he began back in Italy, and completed upon his return from a trip. This is a large canvas, on which the figures are depicted in full height, absorbed as elements classical school painting, as well as many realistically presented features of the characters, made in a new artistic manner for those times.

Acquaintance with the Impressionists

Truly a turning point in the artist's work was 1861, when he met one of the founders of impressionism that was emerging at that time. Thanks to him, Degas entered the circle of painters who devoted themselves to this new trend in art. But despite the common positions, among which important place occupied by the rejection of the official academic art with his tortured and lifeless plots, with new acquaintances, Degas also showed certain differences.

Unlike many impressionists, he did not like to work in the open air - outdoors, believing that it scatters attention. The artist preferred the studio, where the situation allowed for a more thoughtful and conscious approach to the creation of the picture. The plots of his works are mainly connected with the world of opera, theater and cafes.

Another, more significant difference between Degas's work and the work of his new friends was the desire to create works of a social orientation that depicted the life around him without embellishment. It is noted that if the Impressionists focused on light ( a prime example can serve as Manet), then in the paintings of Degas, attention is focused on movement.

Many leading art historians classify his work as impressionism, but it should be taken into account that the attempts to divide artists and their works by style are very conditional. Edgar Degas in this case only expresses the general impulse inherent in the art of his time, and does it in a rather original and individual way.

Franco-Prussian War and later years

The forced break in the artist's work was caused by the Franco-Prussian war that began in 1870. Degas, like his fellow artist Manet, volunteered for the front, where he first served in an infantry regiment, and then was transferred to artillery. Demobilized at the end of hostilities, in 1971 he went first to the UK, and then to his maternal relatives in America.

When Degas returned to France two years later, he began hard times. His father passed away, leaving behind significant debts. To preserve the reputation of the family, Edgar pays them by selling not only the collection of paintings by old masters collected in their family, but also the family house. For the first time in his life, he had to earn a living.

Participation in art exhibitions

The only way out of this situation was an attempt to sell their own works. Edgar Degas, over the next two years, becomes a participant in seven exhibitions organized by his friends the impressionist artists, and, since his works are always a success with potential buyers, he pays off his debts. At the same time, he is becoming widely known as one of the most bright painters of his time.

Works dedicated to the ballet theme

The artist's works can be divided into several thematic areas, one of which, which gained popularity with the public, was the image of ballet scenes, presented by him with grace, but without too much sentimentality. If the works of his predecessors, in which ballet stars were depicted in classical but lifeless poses, were most like magazine covers, then Degas's dancers looked bright and at ease, creating a sense of lively grace. Among the most famous works of this cycle - "Dance Class" (1873), "Dancer on Stage" (1879), "Dancers at Rehearsal" (1879) and "Blue Dancers" (1890).

Scenes from the life of cafes

Another topic on which Edgar Degas wrote his works was the life of Parisian cafes. A favorite place where he found plots for his paintings was Monceau Park, a decade after Degas, sung in the work of Toulouse-Lautrec. The deliberate democracy of the cafeteria life, sometimes bordering on vulgarity, attracted the artist.

It is known that Degas did not give preference to any particular institutions. He equally willingly visited the first-class cafes and the very dubious taverns of Belleville. Here he created unusually expressive scenes, seemingly snatched from life itself. This section of creativity is best known for the paintings “Concert in a cafe” (1877), “Singer with a glove” (1878) and also “Singer on stage” (1877).

Other artistic works

Edgar Degas, whose painting brought him well-deserved fame, worked hard and specific genre, using pastel - a mixture of coloring pigment pressed in the form of crayons with the addition of a sticky substance. This technique, which was not particularly difficult, made it possible to achieve brightness and freshness of tones. It was used at that time by many impressionist artists.

Peculiar "shimmering" strokes, combined with juicy saturated tones, allowed Degas to create a unique colorful atmosphere in his works. Among the most famous works made in this technique, one can name the painting “Blue Dancers”, stored in the Moscow

The variety of creativity Degas

When it comes to a great and versatile master, it is sometimes difficult to distinguish between all his works by genre. Edgar Degas, belonging to this category of artists, left a rich legacy in various fields visual arts. In addition to paintings made in oil and pastel, his engravings and drawings gained great fame. It is known that with age the artist began to lose his sight and gave preference to sculpture. Working with clay and plaster, he was guided to a large extent by touch - his hands replaced his eyes.

Sunset of the artist's life

Having not arranged his personal life, Edgar Degas spent his last years alone. He was almost completely blind, which made it impossible for him to continue working. Fortunately, the artist did not experience material need, since fame and fame made it possible to sell his previously created works at unprecedented prices for those times.

Edgar Degas, whose biography is described in the article, died on September 27, 1917. IN last way he was escorted by the few still surviving fellow artists, among whom were Jean-Louis Forrin. During the burial, no long speeches were made - this was requested in last days life of Edgar Degas himself.

Works, the list of which was included in the golden fund of world art

Years have passed. From the position of time, many works created in the past began to be perceived in a new way. Edgar Degas and his works have become the subject of research for generations of art critics. The artist's paintings are exhibited today in best museums world and are the pride of the largest private collections.

Without the name of Degas, it is impossible to imagine the development of French and world painting of the latter thirds of XIX and the beginning of the 20th century. Today, in the halls of the Louvre, young artists copy his canvases just as he worked many years ago, reproducing the works of old masters. For them, his life devoted to art, all his works are an invaluable school. Edgar Degas is rightfully included in the number outstanding artists peace.

Died September 27, 1917 famous artist Edgar Degas. He is considered one of the main exponents of Impressionism, although Degas always had an independent style. He was not attracted to landscapes. Most often he depicted people in motion. Degas left over 2000 oil paintings, pastels and sculptures. Let's remember best work artist.

On this group portrait Aunt Degas Laura is depicted with her husband, Baron Gennaro Belleli, and two children. Laura is pregnant with her third child though black dress hides her position. During this time, she continued to wear mourning for her father - his portrait hangs behind Laura. Degas began painting this picture in 1858 while visiting his relatives in Florence. Here he made sketches, but finally painted the picture already in Paris in 1859. By that time, the portrait was the most grandiose work of the artist.

Degas painted the picture during a trip to his relatives in New Orleans. Degas informed his friend about this city: “One clap. Everyone here lives only on cotton and for the sake of cotton.” In the foreground of the painting sits Uncle Degas, Michel Musson, a cotton exchange broker; the artist's brother, René de Gas, is depicted reading a newspaper, while his other brother, Achille de Gas, is leaning against a partition in the background on the left. Degas skillfully inscribed portraits of characters in the atmosphere of a business environment.

One of the most famous works Degas. The painting depicts a drunken, weary couple sipping their drinks at the Nouvelle Aten Café in Paris. The woman's glass is filled with absinthe, easily recognizable by its pale green color. Models for the picture were actress Helene André and artist Marcelin Debutin, friends of Degas. Their figures are masterfully displaced from the center of the composition. People seem to be pulled out real life. I must say that initially the picture was not accepted by critics.

Artists of any genre have always attracted Degas, he admired their courage and skill. The painting depicts an acrobat hanging under the dome of the circus on a rope clamped in her teeth. The angle is chosen so that we see the acrobat through the eyes of the viewer sitting below. In the same year that Degas painted his picture, Mademoiselle Lala was on tour in London, and the newspapers were full of reports that this acrobat "has already struck all Paris."

Degas liked to portray people, especially women, as if taken by surprise in their pursuits. The artist became interested in the subject of ballet in the 1870s. He strove to capture the dancers not on the stage in all their splendor, but preferred to show their working backstage everyday life. Such are the paintings “Dancers at Rehearsal”, “Waiting”, “Two Dancers”, etc. When asked why he so often refers to the theme of ballet, Degas once replied: “They call me a painter of dancers; they don’t understand that the dancers were just an excuse for me to write beautiful fabrics and convey movements.”

"Ironers". If the Impressionists considered painting from life to be their most important principle, then this did not apply to Degas. He liked to repeat that one should "observe without drawing, and draw without observing." He sought to show life in all its diversity and endless movement. In general, Degas was close to the Impressionists by the desire to move away from academic patterns, turning to the themes of modern life.

This pastel is one of the most ambitious projects Edgar Degas during the last ten years of his life. The painting depicts four women bathing. Someone is engaged in various procedures, and someone just basks on the grass […]

The picture of Edgar Degas "Combing her hair woman" was highly appreciated by critics and rightfully belongs to his best works. She is a prime example french impressionism. Artists of this trend sought to stop time in their painting. […]

This work was done in realistic genre and corresponds to the main canons characteristic of this direction. But Edgar Degas is interested in experiments with the subject of the image. It is no coincidence that for his work he chooses not an aristocratic lady […]

This painting is written in the genre of impressionism and is one of the most famous works of Edgar Degas, who was interested in depicting "ballet stories". She is characterized unusual composition and complex internal system images. The artist captured the moment [...]

"Dance Class" is one of the most famous works of Edgar Degas. The artist painted the artistic world a lot, depicting actors, opera singers and dancers in his paintings. Backstage inspired the author; he frequented the Paris Opera, […]