Edgar Degas

Sale: Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, Atelier Edgar Degas, 2ème Vente, 11th-13th December 1918, lot 141
Adolphe & Elizabeth Friedmann, Paris (purchased at the above sale)
Thence by descent to the present owner

Paris, Galerie Bernheim-Jeune, Exposition de cent ans de théâtre, music-hall et cirque, 1936, no. 25

Paul-André Lemoisne, Degas et son œuvre, Paris, 1946, vol. II, no. 506, illustrated p. 283

Executed on buff laid paper, not laid down, attached to a window mount along the edges on the verso with Japan paper. There are pinholes at the lower right and at the centre of left edge.The sheet is light stained and there is some mount staining on all four edges (not visible when mounted). There is a small restoration to the right part of the top edge and a repaired tear (approx 3cm. long) to the left part of the upper edge. There are a few furthers nicks and stable smaller tears along the extreme edges. There is a minor flattened crease (approx 10 cm long) running vertically from the upper edge. This work is 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. 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."

Throughout his career Degas was fascinated by images of performers – ballet dancers, opera singers and cabaret artists. Around 1878-80 he executed three pastels on the theme of two singers at the café-concert, a popular form of entertainment in Paris at the time. The present work is a study for a smaller pastel Chanteuse de café-concert, in the collection of the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington D.C. (See: Lemoisne, op. cit., no. 505). All three works show two female figures or the same singer depicted twice. Like in the final version, the two women in the present work are wearing the same costume. The figures reappear in another pastel from the same period now in a private collection (Fig.1). In choosing the theme of the café-concert, Degas has captured a scene of contemporary Parisian night-life, a source of inspiration to a number of his contemporaries.  The present work comes from the collection of Adolphe and Elizabeth Friedmann, who throughout the early 20th century acquired an outstanding collection of French art. Many of the finest works where acquired through their patronage of the galleries Durand-Ruel and Bernheim-Jeune, as well as directly from Degas' Atelier in 1918. Their achievement as collectors was recognised by the donation of two highly important paintings by Degas to the Musée d'Orsay by their family in 1989.