Nude Woman Standing, Drying Herself

Nude Woman Standing, Drying Herself is a notable lithograph created by Edgar Degas between 1891 and 1892. This print belongs to the late period of the artist’s career, when Degas focused intensely on the intimate, unobserved moments of women performing daily ablutions. As a classification of prints, this piece showcases Degas’s masterful and experimental approach to the lithographic medium. He utilizes the delicate textures and tonal variations inherent in printmaking to render the soft light and contours of the figure, achieving a sense of immediacy often absent in more traditional mediums.

The subject matter, a standing nude figure actively engaged in the process of drying herself with a towel, captures the essence of French Realism blended with the compositional structures favored by the Impressionist circle. Degas deliberately avoids the idealized, mythological gaze traditionally applied to the nude form, instead presenting a private moment of vulnerable physicality. The emphasis on line and texture, typical of the lithograph process, gives the figure both solidity and a sense of movement. This work is a significant example of Degas’s persistent exploration of the female form in a non-performance context throughout his career.

Produced in France during a highly fertile period for graphic arts, Nude Woman Standing, Drying Herself demonstrates the lasting artistic legacy of Degas beyond his famous oil paintings and sculptures. Acquired by the Cleveland Museum of Art, this particular print is an essential contribution to the museum's collection of 19th-century works on paper. As a century-old graphic masterwork, this influential image is frequently referenced and studied, with many iterations residing today in the public domain, ensuring its continued impact on art history.