Born Hilaire-Germain-Edgar Degas on July 19, 1834, in Paris, France. The son of a prominent banker, Edgar Degas grew up in a wealthy family and set out to practice law after finishing secondary school. He switched gears in 1855, however, enrolling at the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, where he studied under Louis Lamothe, a pupil of the classical painter Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres.

Edgar Degas traveled extensively to further his art studies, living in Rome for three years in addition to visiting Naples and Florence. His mission during this time was to study and replicate the works of such Renaissance masters as Sandro Botticelli, Andrea Mantegna, and Nicolas Poussin. Degas also became skilled at drawing figures for family portraits, most notably 1959’s The Belleli Family.

After returning to Paris in 1861, Edgar Degas became interested in Biblical paintings, which were coveted among serious art patrons. His work, including 1861's Daughter of Jephthah, gained notice by the Salon, Paris’s prestigious annual state-run art show. Between his copies of works by the Old Masters from the Louvre, his well-received family portraits, and his popular historical paintings, Edgar Degas was able to establish himself financially and avoid the poverty that befell many of his contemporaries.

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Though his historical and Biblical work was a commercial success, Edgar Degas was soon drawn to more contemporary subjects. His urge to depict the vibrant life around him eventually led him to the racetrack, where he portrayed horses, jockeys and the seemingly endless stream of well-to-do spectators. He also began to draw ballet dancers, who would eventually become his most famous subjects. During this period, Edgar Degas formed a friendship with Édouard Manet, who influenced him on the budding Impressionist movement.

At the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71, Edgar Degas served in the French National Guard’s artillery division. When he returned to Paris, he became even more ambitious with his studies of groups, who were often depicted in motion in outdoor settings. In October 1872, Degas traveled to the United States, where he spent five months with members of his family in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was while visiting their cotton plantation that Degas painted his famous New Orleans Cotton Office (1873).

A Carriage at the Races (1872) © Burstein Collection/CORBIS

Many of Edgar Degas' most famous paintings, including A Carriage at the Races (1872) and Ballet Rehearsal (1876), illustrate the artist's experimentation with unorthodox visual angles and asymmetrical perspectives. In these two examples, the figures are actually partially cut out of the paintings by the edges of the canvas. His most prolific period was from 1873 to 1883, when he produced his famous paintings and pastels of the ballet, the racecourse, the music hall, and café society.

After 1874, Edgar Degas withdrew from the Salon and began showing his work almost exclusively alongside the paintings of such other Impressionists as Claude Monet, Alfred Sisley, Berthe Morisot, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Camille Pissarro. His style was distinctive, however, with a strong focus on draftsmanship, portraiture, and composition.

Little Dancer of Fourteen Years (1880-1881) © Philadelphia Museum of Art/CORBIS

When Edgar Degas’ eyesight began to fail him in the 1870s, he began to turn to sculpture. His bronze statues of horses and ballet dancers exemplify the same sense of movement and lyricism as did his paintings, including his famous Little Dancer of Fourteen Years (1880-81). His vision continued to grow worse, and he became increasingly reclusive. Almost totally blind in the last years of his life, Edgar Degas died an isolated eccentric on September 27, 1917, in Paris.

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Related Links

Edgar Degas resources on the Internet

Metropolitan Museum of Art: information on Edgar Degas