Beyond Ballet: Two Ballet Dancers

Beyond Ballet
Edgar Degas, Two Ballet Dancers, 1879
Beyond Ballet
By ELLIE SCHNEIDER

You cannot discuss dance in art without talking about Degas. Still, I stayed away from using classics, such as The Dance Class or Dancers in Pink. Two Ballet Dancers caught my eye because it was different from his other depictions of dancers. Here, the dancers are resting, even stretching, but not dancing. Why would Degas paint dancers who were not dancing? I think that Degas found the same beauty in the movements of the girls’ stretching as when they were dancing. In Two Ballet Dancers, the wood paneled floor sets the stage and their mint-colored tutus pop off of the bright yellow wall.

The girls sit on the bench, reaching, leaning, and stretching. They are not in sync, or they are not “dancing the same routine.” Each girl stretching is the way that is most comfortable and helpful to her body.

For the girl on the right, you can feel her leaning to her left, reaching for her toes to stretch her calf and hamstring. On the left, the girl is in a relaxed first position as she reaches down to hold her calves. I also think that Degas’ depiction of the girls stretching reveals the fatigue and intensity of dancing. The girls practice for hours to perfect their skills, and they are allowed to be tired. Degas’ other works show the beauty of ballet, but this one shows the beauty of hard work. Degas painted ballet dancers to perfect his craft, and the ballet dancers practiced to perfect theirs’.

This painting has bright colors like Rubens uses in Dance of Italian Villagers. I think Two Ballet Dancers also has a lighter tone like in Rubens’ work, as opposed to the drama in El Jaleo. Like Sargent though, Degas focuses on female dancers. I like the casualness of Degas’ Two Ballet Dancers, because it shows how simple tasks like stretching are just as much of a dance as acting dancing is. I also like this work, because I think it is an under appreciated and unique Degas painting.
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Les Danseuses Roses, Avant Le Ballet

Avant Le Ballet
Edgar Degas, Les Danseuses Roses, Avant Le Ballet, 1884
By NATALIE BEYER

Mon Cheri,
I know you are not going to appreciate this as much as I do. But I would like for you to have this painting and hear me out because when I was thinking of the millions of paintings that I could have given you, this is the one that I could not stop thinking about. Edgar Degas, a French Impressionist had interests in painting ballet dancers, or just dancers in general, much like the pink dancers in this painting. He painted with vibrant colors and many brushstrokes. Having a painting displayed in a Salon was the highest honor to an artist during this movement.

Although I am not sure if this particular work made it to a Salon, many of Degas' works did. He is and was considered a founder of the Impressionist movement, and by far my most favorite Impressionist painter. You may look up his other works and ask me why I chose this one out of all of his other great paintings. And to tell you the truth, I really do not know why. Is it because it reminds me of you? Maybe. But mostly, I think it's because this is my most favorite painting that I've practically ever found. The pinks, reds, and yellows compliment each other, even though they are not considered complimentary colors. This painting is random, yes and I'm not completely sure why I picked this painting, but I do know this one is the one I want to give to you.

The innocence and youth in this painting is familiar to me. The danseuses, restless for their upcoming performance reminds me of how I feel around you - overly excited and happy. I hope those feelings never fade. I am thankful for you.

Bisous, Natalie <3

P.S. - I challenge you to find your favorite painting.

Editor's Note: Students were asked to give a painting to someone they cared for. These are their moving responses. 

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Isolation: The Absinthe Drinkers

1876

IsolationSolitude and Painting
Curated by Tommy Dunn


Edgar Degas, The Absinthe Drinkers, 1876

Increased urbanization in the 19th century, particularly in Paris, brought more people together than ever before. And yet, despite this, many people felt just as isolated as ever. On the one hand, the average person’s days were spent surrounded by other people and human connections seemed easy to make. On the other hand, it had never been more difficult to trust another human, with increased crime and a wide variety of vices in which to engage that were not available to people before their moves to the city.

Degas’ painting serves as a warning against certain types of lifestyles in 19th century Paris and a reminder of just how isolated one can feel buried in the middle of a crowd. Sprawled inside a bar in the middle of Paris, a man and a woman sit with vapid stares on their faces. Their minds have been deadened by absinthe. The terms of isolation have changed from earlier in the century. For one, they sit in the world’s most thriving metropolis. But even more than that, they have each other’s company. And yet, despite this, the sallow, pathetic looks on their faces tell a much different story. It is clear from their expressions that they are lost in their own depressing worlds.


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A Fork in The Road: The Rehearsal of The Ballet Onstage

Edgar Degas
A Fork in The Road
Decisions Made in Art
Curated by Sydney Reed

Edgar Degas, The Rehearsal of The Ballet Onstage, 1874

Degas is talented. That’s a given. His brushstrokes simultaneously show the harshness and finesse of ballet dancers, his equestrian scenes display both the peaceful moments before the race and the chaos of galloping hooves once the race begins, and his hands mold exquisite sculptures.  Some can argue that elements of his works have flaws, but very few look at his art and dismiss him as an untalented wannabe. But what if you knew the details of Degas’ process? 

 What if you learned that behind each brush stroke was a man who made his models uncomfortable, not just physically, as he positioned them in challenging positions for hours, but also mentally? Degas would use the “keyhole effect,” the process of painting women in positions in which they would not normally be depicted in, as if someone was peeking through a crack in the door, a rather disturbing way to think about art. Degas wasn’t just admiring the dance moves he depicted in his paintings of the ballet, he was also analyzing the movements of the women, possibly sexualizing them in his head, but, supposedly, never acting on those images. 

 Degas is assumed to never have had relations with a woman. Some credit this to a fear felt by Degas that interaction with women would tarnish his ability to so accurately depict them in his art. He would observe women’s every move, make them endure painful positions (the best examples shown in the bathtub paintings), and all the while turn out amazing paintings that never showed this distanced yet oddly physical relationship. He observed and painted the ballerina’s in their most vulnerable state – rehearsal. Degas focused on the times when the moves had yet to be perfected, when the dancers could fall, fail, and exhibit the pain that became beauty. Degas watched over his subjects,
Edgar Degas, Ballet Rehearsal (La salle de danse), ca. 1891
removed from the scene physically and, as some say, emotionally, but still managed to create beautiful, graceful scenes of tutus and pointe shoes. The only way to describe the relationship between Degas, his subjects and the art he created is creepy, yet eerily beautiful.

 All this begs to differ, at what point does the viewer decide that enough is enough? When does the viewer dismiss the painting not because of a lack of talent, but because of the actions of the artist? After learning about Degas’ rather abusive relationship with women, does the viewer simply walk past the scene of ballerinas when touring the gallery, without granting the painting even a sideways glance? Compare this with the celebrities of today. If an all-star athlete with an outstanding record and celebrity image commits a heinous crime, do you stop wearing that person’s jersey? Or does that depend on the crime, the conviction, or even how famous the person really was, or stays? At what point can you separate the artist from the image? This decision is left to each individual viewer. So what do you think? Does Degas’ process overshadow his talent, or does the final product stand alone, untarnished from Degas’ tactics?  

 Authors' Note – Many thanks to Natalie Dockhorn who introduced me to the other side of Degas in both class discussions and in her senior research paper, Degas and His Women: An Analysis of Degas’s Use of Women Throughout His Career. I credit my argument to her. 
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The Ballet from "Robert le Diable"

1871
Edgar Degas, The Ballet from 'Robert le Diable, 1871

Edgar Degas was born in Paris into a moderately wealthy family. When old enough, his father wanted Edger to pursue a life in the courtroom. So they compromised, Degas went into the Faculty of Law of the University of Paris in November 1853. Since he did not enjoy the world of the lawyers, he decided to not apply himself. He soon met Ingres who told him, "draw lines, young man, many lines."Shortly after Degas received admission to the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, where he found his way through the school developing a style similar of Ingres.

 Degas is known for his graceful paintings of ballerinas from an angle that is off to one side of the stage.  The Ballet from "Robert le Diable" comes from an angle in the audience. In this scene Degas depicts the third act of Giacomo Meyerbeer's opera Robert le Diable. The ghosts of dead nuns have been resurrected and greet one another amid the ruins of a moonlit monastery. While analyzing this painting, it reminds me of the ballet Dracula (preformed by the Kansas City Ballet) where Dracula resides in an abandoned abbey and frequently dances under the cover of moonlight (classic vampire stuff). 

 Degas featured himself in this painting, right in the center of the audience. He is completely oblivious to the performance on the stage and his eyes wander off - much like the other students whom were seeing the inside of the Kauffman center for the first time. Degas paints  The Ballet from "Robert le Diable" with three harsh verticals; the edge of the audience, the arms of the dancers, and then the rail coming off from the archways in the monastery. There is not a good indication of a center, the column splits the painting just to the left, Degas' head just to the right, and the dancers are awkwardly sliced through the center of those two. 

The Ballet from "Robert le Diable" hangs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I have walked through the halls of the Met, however I did not get to see this painting. I saw other pieces by Degas, which is where my appreciation of his works started. 
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Portraits in an Office: The Cotton Exchange, New Orleans

Cotton Exchange
Edgar Degas, Portraits in an Office: The Cotton Exchange, New Orleans, 1873. 

 Edgar Degas visited family in New Orleans in 1872. His brother, René, coerced Degas to stay for a longer time then Degas imagined. During his long stay, Degas created The Cotton Exchange where he included his family within the painting. This painting was popular back in France where it was the only painting of Degas' that was purchased in the Pau Museum. 

Although it does not look like it, Degas encapsulates a moment of devastation. This scene is the exact moment when his uncle Michel Musson's cotton brokerage business went bankrupt in an economic crash. Musson is depicted in the painting near the pile of cotton, examining the cotton.  Degas' brother René is rather lazy, so it is fitting that Degas painted him just sitting and reading the paper. 

Finding out that Degas painted his family members in this piece, it became more interesting. First I thought it was boring and that Degas should stick to horses or dancers. But this painting proves that Degas has talent to spare even in the face of losing his eye sight. 

Compositionally, the painting is okay. I think the perspective is a little off, as the room does not look exact. The painting is split into thirds vertically - cut by the bookshelf in the back and Uncle Musson. The pillar on the left could be left out but I find it nice to balance the man on the right at the desk. It also serves as a painted frame to encase the people on the left more into the painting. The movement is cutting through the painting diagonally starting at the door in the back and ends at the older man sitting in the front. 

I enjoy how Degas has created a serene painting at the time of chaos. Edgar Degas has painted this in the earlier part of his career, and it shows the promise of many great works to come.

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The Dance Class

1873
Degas, The Dance Class, 1873

"The image of Time brought thoughts of mortality: of human beings, facing outwards like the Seasons, moving hand in hand in intricate measure: stepping slowly, methodically, sometimes a trifle awkwardly, in evolutions that take recognizable shape: or breaking into seemingly meaningless gyrations, while partners disappear only to reappear again, once more giving pattern to the spectacle: unable to control the melody, unable, perhaps, to control the steps of the dance."- Anthony Powell

Edgar Degas, a French painter, was known for his dance subjects. He is also considered a founder of impressionism. However Degas disregarded the term "Impressionism" and called his work "Realist". He was taught in painting historical and classical art. But he soon switched to more modern subject matter and used his classical technique in his work, becoming a "classical painter of modern life."

The Dance Class was created in the middle of Degas' career. The diagonal of people pushing towards the dancer by the music stand is the major flow in this scene. Also the touches of red, the man wearing the coat in the background, the other man in the middle-ground, and finally the red carnation in the dancer's hair, pushes the eye foreword.

The viewer obtains a sense of stress and hurriedness from the dancers in the background and in the foreground. If you draw your attention to the dancer in the middle, the gracefulness of her arabesque calms the viewer. As your eyes progress to her hands, you can feel her reach. Her head leaning back, you can breathe in with her, making the painting feel strong, and composed in the middle of chaos.

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Woman at the Window

Edgar Degas
Edgar Degas, Woman At the Window, 1871 
When I first saw this painting all I could think about was how it had an incomplete look to it. The woman lacks facial structure and her dress fades into the background and the furniture also looks like it has not been finished. The woman becomes a silhouette against  a brown and yellow-toned background. I was not star-struck when I first saw this painting. 

Edgar Degas had been considered one of the leaders in the impressionist movement, however he referred to himself as a realist. He leaned away from the impressionist movement in his colors. While others experimented with bright vivid colors, Degas used more somber tones and depicted Parisian life as he saw it being performed, adding his realist perspective. His style changed a bit with the introduction of photography, which influenced him to paint paintings from unusual angles and add more color. 

The painting here demonstrates one of the most complex subjects Degas painted, which is the topic of human isolation. The woman sits alone staring out a window. Although she has no facial expression the mood of the painting gives the feeling of isolation and loneliness. The colors also highlight this aspect. The darkness and use of browns, yellows, and oranges gives the viewer this feeling of loneliness and really plays on these emotions. The lack of facial expression allows the viewer to imagine what she would be feeling and the painting's mood influences what facial expression you would imagine on this woman at the window. This painting made me realize how beautiful it really is. 

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