Edgar Degas

M. Knoedler & Co, New York

New Orleans, Isaac Delgado Museum of Art, New Orleans Collects: Early Masters of Modern Art, 1968, no. 11

Loys Delteil, Le Peintre –Graveur Illustré (XIX et XX siecles), Tome Neuvième, Edgar Degas, Paris, 1919, no. 26, n.p.
Jean Adhémar and Françoise Cachin, Degas: The Complete Etchings, Lithographs and Monotypes, New York, 1975, no. 28, catalogued p. 262
Sue Welsh Reed and Barbara Stern Shapiro, Edgar Degas: The Painter as Printmaker, Boston, 1984, no. 47

Very good condition. Executed on cream wove paper. Sheet is slightly time darkened. Faint residue of glue visible around edges in several places. A few faint flecks of gold paint at upper right corner. Work is hinged to the mat in two places along the top edge. A one centimeter long faint scrape to surface to the left of peach colored circle at center. On the verso, there are several remnants of old paper tape on upper and lower edges. Verso also shows scattered foxing. Color: Colors are brighter and fresher than in catalogue illustration.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

For the present work, Degas appears to have used a working method analogous to his pastel-reworked monotypes. A lightly inked impression of the fifth state of the etching was abraded to increase the area of glare from the two spotlights.  Pastel and graphite were then used freely to revise the composition.  A fifth dancer, whose face and arm can be seen in the profile to the right in normal impressions of this state, has been covered over with pastel; the contour of the foreground flat has been extended with graphite into the lower left corner and up to a higher level at right; and, among other revisions, a profil-perdu has been added to the dancer furthest to the right. Delteil indicates that this etching is rare in all states.