Edgar Degas (Paris, France, 1834–1917, Paris, France). Nude Woman Drying Herself (Femme au Tub), ca. 1884–1886. Oil on canvas, 59 3/8 x 84 1/8 in. (150.8 x 213.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Carll H. de Silver Fund, 31.813 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 31.813_PS9.jpg)
Edgar Degas (Paris, France, 1834–1917, Paris, France). Nude Woman Drying Herself (Femme au Tub), ca. 1884–1886. Oil on canvas, 59 3/8 x 84 1/8 in. (150.8 x 213.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Carll H. de Silver Fund, 31.813 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 31.813_detail_PS9.jpg)
Nude Woman Drying Herself (Femme au Tub)
Edgar Degas
European Art
Rather than posing his models for bathing compositions, Edgar Degas simply asked them to wash themselves in a studio basin so that he could observe their natural movements. Though at this time baths were more common among sex workers than bourgeois women and this painting recalls some of the artist’s brothel subjects, it is unlikely that Degas meant to attach any particular identity to this figure.
The image is thought to be the underdrawing for an ambitious but unfinished painting, and therefore provides insight into Degas’s working process. First using brushes and cloths to establish broad outlines and tonal relationships in monochrome, he would then add color.
The image is thought to be the underdrawing for an ambitious but unfinished painting, and therefore provides insight into Degas’s working process. First using brushes and cloths to establish broad outlines and tonal relationships in monochrome, he would then add color.
MEDIUM
Oil on canvas
DATES
ca. 1884–1886
DIMENSIONS
59 3/8 x 84 1/8 in. (150.8 x 213.7 cm)
frame: 67 5/8 x 93 1/8 x 4 3/8 in., 198 lb. (171.8 x 236.5 x 11.1 cm, 89.81kg) (show scale)
MARKINGS
Stamped lower right: "Degas" (Lugt 658)
COLLECTIONS
European Art
ACCESSION NUMBER
31.813
CREDIT LINE
Carll H. de Silver Fund
PROVENANCE
May 6-7, 1918, purchased from the artist’s estate at Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, France, no. 36 by Marcel Bing, Yamanaka & Co., New York, NY; 1931, purchased from Yamanaka & Co. by the Brooklyn Museum.
Provenance FAQ
EXHIBITIONS
MUSEUM LOCATION
This item is not on view
CAPTION
Edgar Degas (Paris, France, 1834–1917, Paris, France). Nude Woman Drying Herself (Femme au Tub), ca. 1884–1886. Oil on canvas, 59 3/8 x 84 1/8 in. (150.8 x 213.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Carll H. de Silver Fund, 31.813 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 31.813_PS9.jpg)
IMAGE
overall, 31.813_PS9.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2015
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RIGHTS STATEMENT
No known copyright restrictions
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