Little Girl Practicing at the Bar

Little Girl Practicing at the Bar is a sensitive drawing created by Edgar Degas between 1873 and 1885, capturing the private discipline of the ballet world. Classified as a drawing, the piece was executed primarily in black chalk and graphite. Degas masterfully heightened the composition with precise strokes of white chalk on a support of pink laid paper, a technical choice that adds immediacy and texture while allowing the figure to stand out against the colored ground. This technique demonstrates the artist’s commitment to capturing light and form through rigorous linear studies, prioritizing observation over conventional academic finish.

Degas was famously captivated by the ballet and opera scenes of Paris during the late 19th century, frequently documenting the lives of dancers both on stage and, critically, behind the scenes. Unlike his finished paintings which sometimes featured formal stage performances, this specific work focuses intensely on the solitary figure of a young girl practicing at the barre. Degas’s sympathetic depiction shows the quiet effort and strenuous physical demands required of these young ballet hopefuls. The quick, confident lines of the chalk suggest the fleeting nature of the moment and his interest in analyzing the mechanics of movement inherent in dance.

This piece is a powerful example of Degas’s dedication to chronicling the human figure in motion, establishing him as the premiere visual historian of the Parisian dance world. The drawing technique makes this study a significant element in understanding his process leading to his later, celebrated pastels of dancers. The work is a significant component of the permanent collection at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. High-quality prints derived from this era often offer the public access to the detailed studies of this great master.