Artwork
René de Gas [recto]
![René de Gas [recto], by Edgar Degas, graphite, 1855](https://artifactworldgallery.com/img/edgar-degas--rene-de-gas-recto--8c0d31d419e8f1c6-w1024.webp)
René de Gas [recto] is a graphite drawing by the Impressionist artist Edgar Degas. It dates from 1855 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
René de Gas is a graphite drawing on laid paper executed by Edgar Degas in 1855. The work presents a solitary female figure seen from behind, seated on a wooden chair, dressed simply and wearing a hat. Rendered with light, swift strokes, the image functions as a study rather than a finished composition, illustrating Degas’s early interest in capturing everyday moments.
Subject & Meaning
The composition isolates a woman engaged in a quiet, private activity, emphasizing the ordinary over theatricality. By portraying the back of the sitter, Degas invites viewers to contemplate the figure’s presence without narrative distraction, aligning with his preference for intimate, unposed scenes of daily life.
Technique & Style
Degas employs graphite to produce delicate, gestural lines that define the figure’s silhouette and the chair’s structure. The use of laid paper provides a subtle texture that interacts with the light hand of the drawing, creating a sense of immediacy characteristic of his early draftsmanship.
History & Provenance
Created during Degas’s formative years, the drawing predates his well‑known work in pastels, oil, and sculpture. It reflects his development as a draftsman before he turned to the mediums that would later dominate his oeuvre. The piece remains a testament to his early exploration of form and composition.
Context
In the mid‑1850s Degas was associated with the Realist movement, though later linked to Impressionism. His focus on solitary figures and mundane tasks mirrors the broader artistic shift toward depicting contemporary life with observational accuracy, a concern evident in this modest study.
Artist & collection
Artist
Born Hilaire-Germain-Edgar De Gas on 19 July 1834 in Paris, Edgar Degas came from an affluent banking family with aristocratic roots and spent his childhood among the cultivated circles of the French capital.
