Edgar Degas Self Portrait
Dancers
Seated Bather Drying Herself
Dancers in blue, 1890
"Liberty Leading the People (28th July 1830) 1830 "
Ballet Rehearsal, 1873
Edgar Degas- The greatest Impressionist painter
Edgar Degas was born in France who is the elder brother of his five siblings. He was an amazing painter who did many works in his earlier life. He was born in a wealthy family, and his father & mother's name is Augustin De Gas & Celestine Musson De Gas. He started painting from his earlier life, and at the age of 18, he turned his room into an art gallery. His father wanted him to send a law school, and that's why he joined the University of Paris for performing law in 1853. But after some months, he gave up on the dreams of his father and joined École des Beaux-Arts Paris in 1855. There he studied and flourished under the guidance of Louis Lamothe. In 1856 he went to Italy, where he lived for three years and painted multiple copies, and gain more knowledge on classical and academic art. Check Oil Paintings of this famous Artist at our Art Shop
Early Period and Training
At the age of 22, When Edgar Degas visited Italy at his aunt's house for three years, that was the turning point in his life. In these three years, he developed himself and drew many portraits like "The Bellelli Family." He spent all his time in galleries and museums. He studied many works of Renaissance, Michelangelo, Titian, and all. In 1859, he started popular by his name and built himself as a painter. He portraited many historical scenes like "Semiramis Building Babylon," "The Daughter of Jephtha," and "Scene of War in the Middle Ages. He submitted all his works in a public exhibition where people praised his work. In the year 1864, he met Edouard Manet, who copied the same painting which Edgar work on. They became good friends till the last breath, and the story of their friendship is published in the book "The Art of Rivalry." IN 1868 he became a member of an artistic group
Story of Mid-periods
He returned from Italy in 1873 and built a group that organized free exhibitions with the support of Monet and several other painters. In 1874 they held the first exhibition where they exhibited the portraits of modern paintings like ballet dancers, women, and laundresses. After that, in the next 12 years, they organized thes4e kind of exhibitions up to 8 times where they exhibited their different kind of works. Some most famous and praised paintings of Edgar Degas are The dance class, Dancers practicing at the bar, Woman Ironing, The dancing class, and The little Fourteen-year dancer. Some of the critics called his works brilliant, while some say it creepy. No matter what, his paintings were not related to politics, but they reflect the changes in economic environments. In the year 1886, he exhibited some paintings of nude women in the bathing positions, which were the source of controversy, but he still continued his work with the same dedication.