Degas (The Hermann Genius Pocket Guide)

Step into the elegant yet sharply observed world of Edgar Degas (1834–1917), the French artist celebrated for his images of dancers, racehorses, performers, and modern Parisian life. This pocket guide explores Degas’s career and reveals what to look for in his unexpected viewpoints, cropped compositions, expressive lines, and remarkable studies of movement. Although closely associated with Impressionism, Degas approached his subjects with the discipline of a draftsman and the curiosity of an experimental modern artist, working in painting, pastel, printmaking, photography, and sculpture. Biographical insights, intriguing anecdotes, memorable quotations, and a personal portrait offer a fuller view of his complex personality and artistic ambitions. A spotlight on a major work examines the innovation beneath its apparent spontaneity. Featuring more than 65 full-color reproductions, this compact guide introduces the vision of an artist who transformed everyday observation into enduring art.