ArtistsNetwork.com 65en an artist as enduring and widely celebrated as Edgar Degas (1834–1917)
ecomes the subject of an exhibition, it’s as refreshing as it is rare to see a novel
rspective or previously unexplored piece of scholarship presented. The exhibi-
n “Degas at the Opéra”—first mounted at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris and on
now through July 5 at the National Gallery of Art (nga.gov), in Washington,
is just that type of exhibition. Through the one hundred paintings, pastels,
and sculptures on display, visitors get a peek behind the curtains at a lesser-
known side of the artist: his love of the wonderfully dramatic world of opera.
OPERATIC DNA
In particular, it’s Degas’ association with the Paris Opéra that’s explored in this exhibition, as
this was the opera company he frequented and painted most often during the mid-1860s and
post 1900. Celebrating the 350th anniversary of the Paris Opéra’s founding, the exhibition is
curated by Degas expert Henri Loyrette and Kimberly A. Jones, curator of 19th-century French
paintings at the National Gallery of Art, along with Musée d’Orsay curators Leila Jarbouai and
Marine Kisiel. In the exhibition catalog, Loyrette points out that past exhibitions devoted to
The Dance Lesson
ca 1879; oil on canvas,
14 ¹ ⁵ ⁄ ₁^6 x34⅝
NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART,
WASHINGTON, COLLECTION OF
MR. AND MRS. PAUL MELLON