Edgar Degas
Figures in Motion
Art Smart - 3rd Grade
Degas’s Life
Hilaire-Germaine-Edgar
Degas (DAY-GAH) was born
in 1834, in Paris, France and
lived until 1917
He studied art at the famous
art school - École des BeauxArts, and often visited the
Louvre museum to study and
copy the art of the old
masters
Degas’s Style
Degas shared the
Impressionists’ interest in the
effects of light and movement,
as well as in subjects drawn
from daily life
He is most famous for his
subjects of ballet dancers,
horses, and women bathing
He mastered a variety of media,
including oil, pastel,
printmaking, sculpture, and
photography
Impressionism
The
idea, or impression, of a
subject
 Captured like a photograph
 Not always realistic
 May not be centered
The Dance Class 1874
One of Degas's most famous
paintings
24 women (ballerinas and their
mothers) wait while a dancer
executes an "attitude" for her
test
Jules Perrot, one of the best
known ballet teachers in Europe,
conducts the class
The painting was finished after
two years of work
Ballet School 1873
Art Project

Small paper – Using pencil, draw your neighbor
 Capture the impression of the body in motion

Etching paper – Using scratching tool, copy your
drawing from paper
 Remember:
 The figure should take up most of the paper
 The figure should be in motion (stretching, leaning, etc.)