Edgar Degas

Ambroise Vollard, Paris

Georges Bernheim, Paris

Gustave Pellet, Paris (acquired from the above)

Maurice Exsteens, Paris (by descent from the above)

J.K. Thannhauser, New York (by 1934 and sold: Parke Bernet Galleries, New York, April 12, 1945, lot 109)

Murray Spring (acquired at the above sale)

Stephen Hahn, New York

Acquired from the above before 1959

Berlin, Grosse Berliner Kunstaustellung, 1914, no. 4552

Basel, Kunsthalle, Chefs d'Oeuvre du 19e siècle, 1931

Buenos Aires, Museo de Bella Artes, Degas, 1934

Ambroise Vollard, Degas, Paris, 1914, illustrated pl. XCVII (titled Étude de danseuse)

Paul-André Lemoisne, Degas et son oeuvre, vol. 3, Paris,  no. 1222, illustrated pp. 711

Executed on off-white laid paper that is laid down to a thin brown wove paper which is adhered to a 1/4 inch thick paper/card board. The condition of the colors is excellent. A mat burn is present along the edges of the sheet. It is mainly visible in the reserve areas, and to a lesser extent where the pastel is present, though it is not visually disfiguring. The paper, which is very slighly yellowed, appears to be in good condition.
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.

The present pastel of a ballerina in a violet tutu captures the hidden world behind the scenes of the Palais Garnier's spectacular ballet productions.  Degas' sensitivity to the existential condition of this lone dancer is evident, singled out among the many young women of the company anticipating their turn or resting after an exhausting performance.  With this beautiful pastel, the artist transports us into a rarefied scene, away from the pretense of a staged performance.  No other painter of his time was able to present this exclusive atmosphere so convincingly or capture the often overlooked beauty of its informality.  As the contemporary critic Jules Claretie wrote, "he knows and depicts the backstage world of the theater like no-one else, the dance foyers, the essential appeal of the Opéra rats in their bouffant skirts" (quoted in J. De Vonyar and R. Kendall, Degas and the Dance (ex. cat.), The Detroit Institute of Arts & The Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2002-03, p. 63).

In Lemoisne's catalogue raisonné on Degas, this picture appears twice under two different numbered listings - nos. 1222 and 1298bis.  According to Brame & Lorenceau, the second listing is evidently a mistake, and the present work corresponds with no. 1222.  We know that this work once belonged Justin Thannhauser, as it is reproduced in the auction catalogue of his collection that was sold in New York at the end of the Second World War.