Two Men

Two Men is a painting created by Edgar Degas between 1865 and 1869. This sensitive portrait study, executed in oil on a small wood panel, resides in the permanent collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

The work dates from a crucial transitional period for Degas, when he was moving away from formal history painting and increasingly toward Realist subjects drawn from contemporary Parisian life. The composition features two anonymous men in somber, contemporary dress, positioned within an ambiguously defined, dark interior space. Degas demonstrates his skill in capturing human expression, focusing on the subtle interactions and psychological depth of the figures rather than dramatic narrative.

The technique reflects the artist's training in academic tradition. Unlike the broken brushwork that would characterize his later Impressionist-adjacent period, the surface of Two Men is handled with controlled precision, defining the texture of the fabric and the individualized features of the subjects. The muted, restricted palette emphasizes the figures themselves, making them the central focus of this intimate setting.

While Degas is famously associated with the ballet and scenes of modern leisure, this piece provides valuable insight into his earlier commitment to figure study and portraiture involving men. Today, because this painting is considered to be in the public domain, high-quality digital images and prints are often utilized by students and art historians seeking to understand the formative years of this influential French master. This early work by Degas remains an important example of his dedication to depicting unvarnished, truthful observations of modern life.