Book Read in Winter, 'Degas'

Winter is the season when we spend more time indoors to escape the cold winter.  Today I want to tell you about a book 'Degas'.

 

Edgar Degas (1834 -1917) was born in Paris, France to a moderately wealthy family and began to paint early. At 18, he turned a room in his house into an artist's studio. Upon graduation, he registered as a copyist at the Louvre museum.

In the 19th century, artists noticed that they saw nature in different ways, depending on time, lighting and weather, it was constantly changing. Observation of color led to the rejection of black, to the desire to paint with pure colors. The new method opened up a whole world that had previously escaped the attention of artists.

But in 1874 an art exhibition of paintings by young artists caused a scandal. There were several works by the young Edgar Degas there. The pictures seemed unusual, absurd. The artists got the nickname "Impressionists", which sounded like a swear word.

Degas met with a group of young artists in a Parisian cafe. He was interested in the transmission of light. They argued about art.  Degas was attracted by the scenes of everyday life, he depicted races at the hippodrome, people in cafes, the life of the theater.

 

Later, Degas stayed away from the Impressionists. The isolation and arrogance of his character created an atmosphere of loneliness, isolation. His private art collection, discovered after his death in 1918, goes on auction at the start of the first world war during the bombardment of Paris.

This book about the work of the French artist I only briefly retell its contents.  Perhaps you know the work of Edgar Degas well.  

Share your opinion about his paintings, thank you.

 

source