[Self-Portrait in Library (Hand to Chin)]

Self-Portrait in Library (Hand to Chin), created by Edgar Degas in 1895, exemplifies the artist's intense, though short-lived, engagement with photography during the final decades of his career. This intimate gelatin silver print captures the mature artist in an introspective moment, showcasing his fascination with controlled interior light and shadow.

The photograph serves as a rare self-portrait, depicting the subject, one of the central men of the Parisian art world, seated and contemplative, his hand positioned delicately against his chin. Degas intentionally utilized dark, dramatic lighting in his photographic studies. This technique, relying heavily on the contrast inherent in the gelatin silver process, creates moody, almost theatrical effects, distancing the image from the bright, instantaneous aesthetic of contemporary street photography.

Unlike his well-known paintings of dancers and bathers, Degas’s photographs were largely private experiments, often taken late in the evening using minimal artificial light sources. Though these pieces were not originally intended for public exhibition, they offer crucial insight into the artist's evolving technical curiosity during the 1890s. This significant Self-Portrait in Library (Hand to Chin) print resides in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. As the image ages and its cultural impact solidifies, photographs such as this frequently enter the public domain, enabling widespread access and study of Degas’s innovative use of the camera.