FOUR YOUNG DANCERS by Edgar Degas

Young Dancer by Edgar Degas, Art Institute of Chicago

On a recent visit to the Art Institute of Chicago, I met, once again, the famous sculpture of a young dancer by Edgar Degas. It was like meeting an old friend. In each case, her tutu was a different color, but the figure, paused in thought, was the same.

Little Dancer Age Fourteen, Musee D'Orsay

My first encounter with her was in Paris at the Musee D'Orsay in 1998.

Little Dancer, Norton Simon Museum

I then met her again a few years later in Pasadena, California, at the Norton Simon Museum.

Original Wax Sculpture of the Little Dancer, National Gallery, Washington, D.C.

And then, on a trip to Washington, D.C., three years ago, I saw her again. My previous views–in Paris, at the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, and in another exhibit at the National Gallery–were all casts made after his death.  This time I saw Degas’ original wax sculpture of the Little Dancer from which the casts were made, so for the first time I could see how the surface was modeled.  The figure is made of wax over a metal armature to which the artist added wood, rope, and even old paintbrushes in the arms.  Then a wig of human hair was added as well as a cotton-and-silk tutu, a cotton faille bodice, and linen slippers. Her turned out toes, erect posture and raised chin seem to convey an inner determination.The wax model of Little Dancer Aged Fourteen was on view from October 5, 2014 to January 11, 2015.
For a fascinating history of the various versions of the young dancer sculpture, click HERE.

DEGAS' Little Dancer and Works by ANDREW WYETH at the National Gallery, Washington, DC

Little Dancer Aged Fourteen, Original Wax Sculpture by Edgar Degas

On a recent trip to Washington, DC, I spent the morning at the National Gallery of Art, focusing on two of the current special exhibits, Degas’ Little Dancer Aged Fourteen, and a show of Andrew Wyeth paintings and drawings.  I have seen the Little Dancer by Degas several times before–in Paris, at the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, and in another exhibit at the National Gallery–but they were all casts made after his death.  In this exhibit at the National Gallery is Degas’ original wax sculpture of the Little Dancer from which the casts were made so for the first time I could see how the surface was modeled.  The figure is made of wax over a metal armature to which the artist added wood, rope, and even old paintbrushes in the arms.  Then a wig of human hair was added as well as a cotton-and-silk tutu, a cotton faille bodice, and linen slippers. Her turned out toes, erect posture and raised chin seem to convey an inner determination. Little Dancer Aged Fourteen will be on view from October 5, 2014 to January 11, 2015.

Ballet Scene, Edgar Degas, Pastel

The Little Dancer was first exhibited in 1881 in Paris with other Impressionist works.  Fittingly, her surroundings at the National Gallery are paintings and drawings of other dancers by Degas, as well as works by other Impressionist and Post-Impressionist artists including Monet, Renoir, Van Gogh, and Cezanne. Many of the paintings are familiar from my art history classes but there were also some new ones such as Van Gogh's Green Wheat Fields, recently acquired by the museum. Van Gogh's characteristic layered brushstrokes pulsate across the surface of the painting.

Vincent van Gogh, Green Wheat Fields, Auvers, 1890

Another featured exhibit currently at the National Gallery is Andrew Wyeth: Looking Out, Looking In, which shows one of Wyeth’s  most famous paintings Wind from the Sea and explores his lifelong fascination with windows, a subject he depicted in more than three hundred works. Wyeth’s ability to paint the same subject over and over, each time seeing it in a new light and giving it new life is one of the pleasures of this exhibit.  Photographs were not allowed.  It will be on view until November 30, 2014.

Andrew Wyeth Exhibit at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC

On our way to the two exhibits we passed many rooms of art that we didn’t have time to stop and view. The National Gallery is huge and impossible to see in one day. Our visit only encompassed the West Wing.  The East Wing galleries are currently closed for renovation.  On another trip we’ll go back to see more.

National Gallery of Art, West Wing