Sulking

Sulking is an oil on canvas painting created by Edgar Degas in 1870, capturing a highly charged yet intimate interior scene. The work depicts two figures, a man and a woman, seated within a café or private room, seemingly engaged in a moment of strained silence and emotional disconnection. The composition emphasizes modern psychological distance, a signature concern of Degas’s explorations into contemporary Parisian life.

The artist uses the confined interior space to heighten the tension. The man, positioned stiffly in the foreground with his head bowed, appears physically and emotionally withdrawn. Opposite him, the woman avoids eye contact, intently focused on reading a newspaper or book. This inclusion of reading material highlights the subjects’ deliberate use of external activities to manifest their separation. Degas employs strong contrasts and an almost cinematic cropping, aligning this piece structurally with Realist traditions even as he embraced techniques that would later be associated with Impressionism.

This painting is classified as a significant piece in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s comprehensive collection of 19th-century European art. Degas’s ability to render complex social dynamics in domestic or semi-public settings makes the work a crucial document of the period. Due to the historical nature and enduring popularity of the artist, high-quality prints of this work are frequently utilized for educational purposes and are often available via public domain archives, allowing widespread access to the masterwork.