Self-Portrait
1857
Before he became the grumpy master of ballerinas, a 23-year-old Edgar Degas drew this striking self-portrait in 1857. The young artist gazes off to the side with a serious, intense expression, his features rendered in soft, reddish strokes that hint at his early academic training. At this time, Degas was heavily influenced by the Neoclassical master Ingres, who famously advised him to 'draw lines, young man, lots of lines.' You can see that discipline in the careful contouring here, a far cry from the blurry, energetic pastels he would later champion as an Impressionist.
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