Inspired by It: Edgar Degas

I have loved Edgar Degas for as long as I can remember. I actually think I can pin point the moment when this love started. It was fifth grade art class, and my teacher had just written "Impressionism" on the board in big bold letters. I had no idea what this meant. Next she held up a picture of a beautiful ballerina dressed in a gorgeous pastel tutu. She looked so elegant and graceful, almost fragile. I wanted to be that ballerina. Needless to say my ballerina talent was very limited and only lasted for a couple of years (those point shoes should be used as torture devices in foreign skirmishes). But, what I do continue to appreciate about that ballerina is the artistic skill used to paint her.

The reason I loved this portrait so much was the way she was painted. Degas did a wonderful job of using color (pastels! pastels! pastels!) and cropped some of his portraits to help focus on a beautiful detail. His paintings were not detailed in themselves (quite the opposite actually) but they focused on a beautiful part of the portrait whether it was the back of a woman's neck or a shoulder blade. The feeling of his paintings instantly make you fall in love. To this day his paintings inspire me in my color pallets for outfits and even my own artwork. Yes, a lot of my clothing choices are even inspired by Degas!! I know that might sound a little strange, but I love to wear pastels and sometimes looking at how they work together in paintings helps me choose which will look better in a real life ensemble. Anyway, I hope these paintings inspire you like they inspire me! Enjoy!!












[images from google images]