While working on assignment 1, I’ve continued to read in Bill Creevy’s pastel book. It presents many techniques and illustrates them step by step, and I find it very inspiring. Pastels are a really interesting medium. Creevy also explains some mixed media techniques, like combining pastels with watercolour, acrylics or binder materials. I’d really like to try this out some day! He also mentions Edgar Degas, the french painter, who employed a very interesting mixed media technique: First making a monoprint, and then using the second or further prints, which are normally much weaker and less presentable than the first, as a foundation layer to build pastels on. So I thought it might be interesting to do some research on Edward Degas and the techniques he used.
Edgar Degas (1834 – 1917) was a French painter, sculptor, draftsman and printmaker. He was very interested in the subject of dance and achieved mastery in depicting movement. He was strongly influenced by Ingres and tried perfectioning his use of line. Originally, he had wanted to become a historic painter, but then changed interest towards contemporary subjects in his early thirties. In his late thirties, he went to New Orleans and painted “A Cotton Office in New Orleans” which was later bought by a french museum. I like this painting very much. It looks like a very realistic portrait of his time.
Degas was one of the founders of the impressionist movement, but came into quarrel with others of the group, disliked the scandals around them and broke up with them finally. Seemingly he had some financial success and was able to sell his artwork. He must have been a very difficult personality, with whom no-one was able to remain friends, and finally all his friends resigned. (Source: Wikipedia)
A Google search for his works mostly brought up oil paintings, but I also found some pastels. Two I liked a lot are the Tired Dancer (c. 1882-85), and Woman at her toilette (1889). I especially like the unfinished character of the second drawing which makes it look like a study. It suggests that Degas’ masterpieces were perfectioned versions of more humble beginnings, which is something I find personally encouraging!
I did some more research specifically for Degas’ drawings and found several very beautiful. I very much like Dancer with arms outstretched (c. 1878). On this drawing, there are grid lines, which are indicators that it was later transferred to another support.
Another very interesting work is the Seated Dancer (ca. 1871). This is a study in oil paint thinned with turpentine, on paper. I like a lot the contrast between this light, yet masterly study and the finished oil painting. I’m very much impressed by the certainty with which the position of the left leg and foot are drawn, where the figure’s lower body only consists of a large ballet tutu and there’s no indication of the actual body lines between the waist and the lower leg.
The finished painting is Dance Class at the Opéra on the Rue le Peletier (1872), and the figure from the Seated Dancer seems to be the one on the lower left of this painting. Interesting to see how Degas has changed some details like the type of fabric for the tutu and the posture of the body.
Finally, The Star (1876-77) is an example for a drawing with pastels on monotype as mentioned by Bill Creevy in his book. Lovely.
References
Bill Creevy (1991): The Pastel Book, Watson-Guptill Publications, New York
Wikipedia, Edgar Degas: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_Degas
Degar, Tired Dancer (c. 1882-85), from http://www.abcgallery.com/D/degas/degas46.html
Degas, Woman at her toilette (1889), from http://www.abcgallery.com/D/degas/degas-2.html
Degas, Dancer with arms outstretched (c1878), from http://www.themorgan.org/collections/works/degas/drawingEnlarge.asp?page=12#
Degas, Seated Dancer (c. 1871), from http://www.themorgan.org/collections/works/degas/drawingEnlarge.asp?page=6
Degas, Dance Class at the Opéra on the Rue le Peletier (1872), from http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fichier:Edgar_Germain_Hilaire_Degas_005.jpg
Degas, The Star (1876-77), from http://www.monoprints.com/history/brief.html