The Dance Class by Edgar Degas - Essay Example

Formal Analysis on the Impressionist Painting "The Dance , 1874 by Edgar Degas Introduction Edgar Degas was one of the most successful and beloved artists for decades. The painter did various great works, but it is the Dance Class painting that gave him the public recognition all over the world. The drawings of the ballerinas and others make the work the subject that many people come to appreciate. The painting has a unique composition that brings out every character to seem real. Most of the painters concentrate on the finer details, but Edgar made the Dance Class painting more intriguing by using the rehearsals instead of painting the ballerinas when they were performing in front of an audience. The way the painting captures different ballet dancers performing different tasks and their teacher standing before them shows passion in the work. The colors indicate knowledge and details that Edgar was able to collect and put into paper after visiting the classes for several days. The lighting and the brushing enhance the depth of knowledge of the artists to a level most artists are yet to reach. Art is about creativity and ability to express a situation without words. Formal Analysis Edgar paid more attention to color in the painting The Dance Class by expressing the tutus and motions of the ballet dancers. The picture is well enveloped by the ceiling, and the space of the painting is expanded by using the oblique point of view. The ballet teacher who happens to be a real character is standing in the middle of the class and some of the ballerinas are facing him while practicing. Ballerinas see each other busy with their practice and other activities involved in a ballet class. The painting gives us a striking balance between the inelegancy of the ballet in wait and the glamour of the dancing ballerinas. There is also the floor and wall colors that make the painting complete, more dazzling and suitable for the painting. 1. What is the title of the painting or drawing, when was it made and by whom? The painting is The Dance Class (La Classe de Danse), it was made in 1873 by Edgar Degas. 2. Does the artist define the image primarily through the drawing of lines, through the shading of forms dark to light, through the juxtaposition of colors, or through a combination of the above? The artist has defined the image through the shading of those forms dark to light with the hope that they infuse the scenes with immediacy. 3. How is color, or hue or palette, employed? What colors are used? What is their intensity or saturation? – In other words how red is the red? Are the colors realistic or symbolic? Edgar used dazzling colors, which are well distributed in the painting. The main colors used include red, white, grey, yellow, blue, green, black and brown. The colors saturation was well painted depending on the color intensity (Cohen and Copeland 116). The red was fire red in all characters of the painting. Each color represents a deep meaning to the painting, they are all symbolic to the painter and the people who appreciate art. 4. Describe the texture of the paint. Can you see the brushstrokes? If so, the artist is employing what is called the technique of impasto. The texture of the paint is rough yet very appropriate for this particular work. There are brushstrokes at the edges of the paintings as well as the ballerinas’ dresses, which represents authenticity of Edgar’s works (Cohen and Copeland 57). Yes, the painter represented the impasto technique. 5. How does the artist imply depth or flatness? How the space in the work organized is, is it deep or shallow? Does the painting employ techniques of perspective, linear perspective, and atmospheric perspective, foreshortening, and overlapping? If perspective is used are the foreground, middle ground and background of the work clearly defined? The artist implied the depth of situations seriously and was observant with some details many people would leave out. For example, in this painting the rehearsals are what impressed him more (Cohen and Copeland 205). The way the ballerinas were exhausted after the practice, how they stretched and scratched their backs gave him ideas of painting something meaningful and deep. The space organization in this work is deep; he organizes the ordinary gestures and gives the grounds true importance by having very admirable floors. He gives the dancers enough space for them to stretch after hours of practice making the painting to appear more real. Yes, the painting employs the techniques of perspective by building real characters, linear perspective in the way the floors are well brushed and neatly presented, atmospheric perspective by demonstrating what ballerinas do after a long dance, foreshortening, and overlapping by use of similar colors in the painting. All the perspectives used are clearly defined in the painting, which proves that this particular work was done by an expert in art (Cohen and Copeland 113). 6. How are the formal elements arranged, in other words what the COMPOSITION is. How does the composition work? Is it symmetrical, asymmetrical, patterned, chaotic, etc? What is the relationship between the various objects in the piece? The composition is about the ballerinas’ performance and limelight, but most important are the rehearsals and training with their teacher, which makes it very original and authentic. The painting represents the end of a class where the students are exhausted from the dance, and they are scratching and stretching themselves (Cohen and Copeland 312). Some are seen adjusting their hair ribbons while their inflexible teacher is trying to address them before they leave the class. The composition is asymmetrical with most of the things placed at their right place like it was a real picture. The ballet teacher is a real character and the ballerinas are a creation by Edgar from the various studios he visited to watch rehearsals. The floors are admirable and moistened which makes them appropriate for dancers because they cannot slip. Works Cited Cohen, Marshall and Roger, Copeland. What Is Dance?: Readings in Theory and Criticism. New York: Oxford University Publishers, 1983. Print Read More