About the artist
Edgar Degas (1834-1917) was a French Impressionist artist well known for his paintings, sculptures, prints, and drawings of ballet dancers, race horses, and other scenes of modern life. He was a master of the use of pastels and is particularly identified with the subject of the dance. Degas also explored the expressive potential of photography, and was an early adopter of the medium. He was a close friend of many Impressionist painters, including Mary Cassatt and Édouard Manet.
Also associated with: Impressionism, pastels, photography, Mary Cassatt, Édouard Manet, ballet dancers.