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Speech:

The artist I chose to research for this project was the French Impressionist Edgar Degas. He
was a painter, sculptor, and printmaker. My biggest take away is that Degas is not actually an
Impressionist. While Degas worked during the Impressionist Era in France, he rejected the title
Impressionist. When examined, his style and approach has differences from the Impressionists.
Degas prefered to use artificial light, focused on composition, worked from memory or sketches,
and tended towards realism. Additionally, Degas showed his subjects as actual humans, rather
than perfect beings. In contrast, the Impressionists preferred painting outdoors and to convey
the transient nature of light on these outdoor scenes. However, similar to the Impressionists,
many of his works focused on the middle class in Paris. Moreover, his work took influences
from other art movements, such as realism and Japanese prints. For instance, from Japanese
prints, he adopted ideas on composition in his usage of cropping and asymmetry. All things
considered, I believe Edgar Degas should not be classified as an Impressionist.

Biography:
Edgar Degas was born on July 19th, 1834, in Paris, France. He was born Hilaire Germain
Edgar de Gas to a wealthy Franco-Italian family. Before Degas went to art school, he copied
the works of great masters in the Louvre, trying to recreate their techniques and styles. Edgar
was classically trained at cole des Beaux-Arts in 1855, where he studied under Louis
Lamothe. This academic training led to Degas interest in the human figure. As his eyesight
failed, his focus shifted toward sculpture. Edgar worked from 1859-1910. Throughout these 51
years, Degas created many pieces. He died September 27th, 1917 in Paris, France.

Major Works:
Some of his most notable pieces include Little Dancer of Fourteen Years, a bronze statue made
in 1881; The Dance Class, an oil painting done in 1874; The Foyer of the Opera at Rue Le
Peletier, another oil painting produced in 1872; and The Bellelli Family, an oil painting from
1867.

Influences:
As Degas was classically trained, he was influenced by the Realist movement. His works often
started as sketches and each detail was planned out. He was also influenced by Japanese
prints. One of the main techniques he used was cut off figures. In many of his paintings the
whole figure is not visible. While Degas is classified as an Impressionist, he considered himself
an Independent. He felt as though Impressionism was incomplete and sloppy. He prefered to
use artificial light rather than painting outdoors. However, the majority of his pieces depict
contemporary life similar to Impressionists.

Characteristics:
Many of his works portray moments of imperfection. This tendency is fairly obvious in his
ballerina works, where dancers are depicted fixing shoes, adjusting costumes, and other
backstage aspects. In many of his ballet works, he used contorted postures. This perspective
displayed their flexibility and physical discipline. Often, some figures are cut off and partially
shown the canvas. This technique is one that he borrowed from Japanese prints.

Degas used the element of line to show the contours of figures and convey movement. Both
organic and geometric shapes can be found throughout his work. He used differences in value
to show space and form. As Degas studied the movements of people, he tried to represent that
movement in his work through bent arms, legs, and backs. He also showed movement through
quick, short strokes. Examples of contrast are apparent; in many of his works, the main figures
are brightly colored while the background is dull. In his ballet works, the dancers all convey
unity/harmony as they wear the same costumes/outfits. All figures in his works are
proportionate and to scale.

Reflection on My Art Piece:


Similar to Degas, my painting focuses on a human figure under artificial lighting. However, my
subject was a kickboxer; a subject Degas never used. In order to make the piece more like
Degass work, I could have chosen a moment of more imperfection/behind the scenes, such as
someone wrapping his or her hands or putting on boxing gloves. Mimicking Degas, I chose to
make the background mostly plain. In contrast, I feel as though Degas used less vibrant colors
then I chose. While Degas used sketches, I took a photo and worked using that medium. My
piece was planned out, as I took multiple photos until I got one where the composition and
lighting was best. I used my brush strokes to convey motion, which I feel Degas also did. I
could have cropped the picture so that Victorias full figure wouldnt be seen. Degass paintings
tended to have multiple subjects, so I could have had more models. I kept the background plain
to contrast with the main figure.

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