The Little Dressing Room

The Little Dressing Room by Edgar Degas (French, 1834-1917) is a refined example of the artist's masterful graphic output, created between 1879 and 1880. This intimate print was executed using drypoint on cream laid paper, reflecting Degas’s dedication to capturing private, unguarded moments away from the stage in late 19th-century France.

The drypoint technique, which involves scratching directly into a copper plate with a sharp point, allowed Degas to achieve the characteristic velvety, burred line seen in the work. This method demands immediacy and precision, resulting in soft shadows and rich blacks where the burr holds the ink. Degas utilized prints and preparatory sketches as critical tools in his exploration of form, light, and silhouette, often dispensing with the demands of full color to focus purely on compositional dynamics.

Degas frequently turned his attention toward the lives of dancers and laundresses, positioning them in unconventional settings that emphasized the reality of their labor and preparation. In this composition, the structure of The Little Dressing Room is suggested through quick, economic lines, highlighting the artist's interest in unconventional framing and the dynamics of the human figure in motion or at rest.

The starkness of the medium lends an ephemeral quality to the scene, echoing the tenets of modern art that sought to depict contemporary Parisian life with immediacy. As a pivotal figure in French art, Degas profoundly influenced generations of artists who followed. This notable impression of the work is preserved within the distinguished print collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, offering researchers and the public access to a significant example of this master’s graphic exploration.