deliberation, I finally decided upon The Ballet Class. Although I have seen this particular painting many times before, I was inexplicably drawn to it because something about it just spoke to me. When observing The Ballet Class, it makes me feel like I am right there inside the painting, as if somehow I am removed from this current world and transported into that fascinating realm that Degas created in oil paint. Degas really captured the essence of the time period and the social context of the ballet as well.

Although The Ballet Class seems like a photographic snapshot of dancers caught in the middle of movement, each of Degas’ compositions were very carefully staged. They are the result of a “meticulous, obsessed study of their working movements, and intimate daily activities.” On this subject, Degas noted “It is necessary to redo the same subject ten, even one hundred times. Nothing in art should look casual, especially movement!”

For the most part, the colors in this painting are somewhat muted, with the exception of the bows on the dancers’ tutus and the bright yellow wall, which stands in stark contrast to the rest of the painting. The only dark colors in The Ballet Class are worn by the adults: the blackish gray outline of the male teacher, and the long dark blue dress that the chaperone is wearing. The ballerinas’ costumes are mostly white, aside from the reddish pink ribbon or sash they each wear around their waists. All of the dancers in this class appear to have the same light brown hair and pale skin. The dancers all seem to be about the same age as well. Degas utilized both loose brush strokes and controlled brush strokes in The Ballet Class. The figures of the dancers, the chaperone, and the male teacher are all carefully and precisely drawn, while the dancer’s tutus are made with more lively broad strokes.

Degas eventually gave up painting in favor of pastels and charcoal

Some topics in this essay:
Ballet Class, Academie Ballet, Edgar Degas, Impressionists Degas, Opera Degas’, ballet class, Mary Cassatt, Class Degas’, male teacher, bow tutu, degas created, reddish pink, dancer’s tutus, colors painting, dancers chaperone, dancers practice, degas’ art,