COLLECTION NAME:
Undergraduate Thesis Collection
Record
Title:
The Toxic Environment of the Paris Opera and Degas' Dancers
Creator:
Nevin, Lindsay A.
Subject:
Thesis (B.F.A.) -- Art History
Subject:
Savannah College of Art and Design -- Department of Art History
Rights:
Copyright is retained by the authors or artists of items in this collection, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Abstract:
"Edgar Degas is one of the most well-known and influential 19th-century artists. With an oeuvre of over 600 works spanning over 40 years, historians and students have looked at and analyzed these to find the meaning within. A popular analysis amongst art historians is that Degas' depictions of women expose his misogyny and hatred toward the gender. At the beginning of the Impressionist era, the concept of modern life as art had not quite taken off yet. French women were still being portrayed in perfected poses and conservative attire. Showing the imperfections and the pain was against the current, but Degas does it nonetheless. His depictions of dancers are a series that also fall under this category typically focusing on how the artist treats the female form. Dancers are seen in unattractive poses and expressing anguish. But the history goes a lot deeper, and the lives of the dancers were a lot more complicated. For parents of young girls living on the streets of Paris, the opera or ballet was one of the most guaranteed ways out of poverty. The ballet acted as a platform for older established men to meet and socialize with the girls, often benefiting the entire family as well. Despite this relationship existing as a normal phenomenon at the time, Degas’ images of dancers reveal a sad story about the unfortunate situation of the young girls. Juxtaposing the bright innocence of the ballet with the contorted figures of children sought after and enjoyed by wealthy older men. This thesis will analyze The Foyer de la Danse, The Dance Class, and The Rehearsal of the Ballet on Stage, and how they highlight the human condition as well as the noxious bond between ballerinas, their mothers, and the mysterious male figures lurking in the wings." -- Abstract
Publisher:
Savannah, Georgia: Savannah College of Art and Design
Date:
2021-05
Format:
1 online resource: 1 PDF (Thesis, 50 pages, color illustrations)