René de Gas [recto]

1855

Edgar Degas

Associated Names
Edgar Degas

Artist, French, 1834 - 1917

The sketch shows a young person from the waist up in a three-quarter view facing to the viewer's left. They have short hair, defined facial features, and are wearing a coat with a bow tie. One hand rests on a surface, and the other appears to hold the garment's belt. The background has intricate patterns that could be wallpaper or a framed artwork, suggesting a domestic setting.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    graphite on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon

  • Dimensions

    overall: 30.5 x 23.7 cm (12 x 9 5/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1995.47.32.a

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Lemoisne 1946, undescribed

Associated Artworks

The image shows parts of a person's body, focusing on two feet. The foot on the left appears to be partially covered by clothing near the ankle area, and its sole and toes are visible. On the right side, another foot is depicted in profile, showing the arch and toes drawn from the side view. The background is a plain, textured surface, appearing like a neutral drawing paper. There are no additional clothing, jewelry, or objects seen within the frame, and the background remains unobtrusive, serving only to highlight the drawn feet.

Studies of Feet [verso]

Edgar Degas

1855

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

René De Gas; Marcel Guérin, Paris; Richard S. Davis, Minneapolis, MN; Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, Upperville, VA, 1963; gift to NGA, 1995.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1931

  • Degas: Portraitiste, Sculpteur. Musée de l'Orangerie, Paris, 1931, no. 81.

1948

  • Seventy Master Drawings. Fogg Art Museum, Cambridge, MA, 1948-1949, no. 64.

1966

  • French Paintings from the Collections of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon and Mrs. Mellon Bruce, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1966, no. 222, repro.

1974

  • Recent Acquisitions and Promised Gifts: Sculpture, Drawings, Prints. National Gallery of Art, Washigton, DC, 1974, 48, B.

1978

  • Master Drawings from the Collection of the National Gallery of Art and Promised Gifts, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1978, p. 99.

1997

  • Building a Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC,1997-1998, no. 135, as René de Gas.

1999

  • An Enduring Legacy: Masterpieces from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1999-2000.

2000

  • Art for the Nation: Collecting for a New Century, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 2000-2001, pp. 212-213. repro.

2016

  • In Celebration of Paul Mellon, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 2016.

2023

  • Manet/Degas, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 2023-2024, pl. 14, repro.

Bibliography

1928

  • Guérin, Marcel. "Remarques sur des Portraits de Famille Peints par Degas," Gazette des Beaux-Arts 5 17 (June 1928): 37, 371-372.

1932

  • Nirdlinger, Virginia. "Some Family Portraits by Degas," Parnassus 4 (March 1932): 13.

1944

  • Rebatet, Marguerite. Degas. Paris, 1944: pl. 4.

1946

  • Lemoisne, Paul André. Degas et son oeuvre. 4 vols. Paris: Arts et metiers graphiques, 1946-1949. Vols. 2 and 3, 1946. Reprinted in 5 vols., New York and London, 1984, under no 6.

  • Rewald, John. "Degas and His Family in New Orleans." Gazette des Beaux-Arts VI ser., vol 30 (August 1946):146, fig. 9.

1962

  • Boggs, Jean Sutherland. Portraits by Degas. Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1962: 8, pl. 8.

1970

  • 19th and 20th Century Paintings from the Collection of the Smith College Museum of Art. Exh. cat. Northampton, 1970: 19, note.

1984

  • Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington. Rev. ed. New York, 1984: 680, no. 1094, color repro.

  • Lemoisne, Paul-André. Degas et son Oeuvre. 5 vols, New York (1984): 2-3.

1988

  • Boggs, Jean Sutherland. Degas. Exh. cat. Galeries nationales du Grand Palais, Paris, 1988: 62-63, fig. 28, under no. 2.

1996

  • NGA Circle Bulletin, 1996.

2023

  • Wolohojian, Stephan, and Dunn, Ashley E. Manet, Degas. Exh. cat. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 2023: 91, pl. 14.

Inscriptions

lower right in graphite: à René / E Degas 1855.

Markings

none

Watermarks

none

Wikidata ID

Q64556368

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