Edgar Degas

David G Thompson, Pittsburgh

Galerie Beyeler, Bâle (1966)

Jose Luiz and Beatrice Plaza (acquis en 1966), Londres / Caracas

Vente : Sotheby's, Londres, 9 décembre 1997, lot 369

Acquis lors de cette vente par le propriétaire actuel

Galerie Beyeler, Bâle, Autour de l'Impressionnisme, 1966, no. 8

John Rewald, Degas: Works in Sculpture, A complete catalogue, New York, 1944, no. LIX , cat. p. 27, un autre exemplaire reproduit pp. 124-125

John Rewald, Degas sculpture, Complete Works, Londres, 1957, no. LIX, cat. p. 157, un autre exemplaire reproduit pl. 79

John Rewald, Degas Complete Sculpture: Catalogue Raisonné, San Francisco, 1990, no. LIX, un autre exemplaire reproduit pp. 156-157

Anne Pingeot, Degas sculpture, Paris, 1991, cat. p. 184, no. 65, un autre exemplaire reproduit pp. 146-147

Joseph S. Czestochowski & Anne Pingeot, Degas Sculptures, Catalogue Raisonné of the Bronzes, Memphis, 2002, no. 71, un autre exemplaire reproduit p. 261

 

Attractive dark brown patina with ochre red and transparent nuances. This bronze is in very good general condition. A close inspection reveals some very light signs of wear to the patina on the protruding parts and some thin light scratches on the right side of the stomach and on the contours of the right hip. There are some vertical minor thin scratches at the centre of each side of the base and small sharp reliefs on the left of the lower back inherent to the casting process. This sculpture is in very 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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

inscribed 'Degas', numbered '7E' ; bears the foundry mark 'AA Hébrard, cire perdue', bronze. Conceived between 1882 and 1895 and cast in bronze between 1919 and 1937 in an edition of 22 numbered from A to T plus two casts reserved for the Degas heirs and the founder Hébrard.

 

Cette collection de deux Danseuses, deux Chevaux et un Nu (lots 13-17), constituée pendant plus de vingt ans par un grand amateur, se distingue par la très haute qualité des patines de chaque modèle.

Dans la sculpture comme dans toutes les autres disciplines, Degas ajouta aux conceptions académiques d'exécution, de finition et de pose, une représentation très originale de l'espace dont on commence à peine à entrevoir l'importance cinquante ans après sa mort. Avec du recul, son œuvre sculpté synthétise les grandes tendances qui traversèrent la sculpture au XIXème siècle et pose les bases de l'histoire de la sculpture abstraite du XXème siècle.

Charles MILLARD, "The Development of Degas's Sculptural Style", in. The Sculpture of Edgar Degas, Princeton, University Press, 1976

Fig. 1  Degas Sculptures, H. O. Havemeyer Collection Exhibition, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1930, la première exposition de bronzes de Degas.

 

This collection of two Dancers, two Horses and one Nude (lots 13-17), assembled over more than twenty years by a discerning collector, is remarkable for the outstandingly fine patina of each model.

In sculpture, as in all his work, Degas combined conventional interests in careful finish and ritual poses with spatial concepts so advanced that more than fifty years had to pass after his death before they could be clearly seen and understood.  In this respect his sculpture is a synthetic microcosm of the forces operating in nineteenth-century sculpture in general and a major step towards the abstract sculpture of the twentieth century.

Charles MILLARD, "The Development of Degas's Sculptural Style", in. The Sculpture of Edgar Degas, Princeton, University Press, 1976