Paris, 1863–1906

Edgar Degas

The Dance Class

1874

Oil on canvas, 32 3/4 × 30 1/2 in. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Edgar Degas (French, 1834–1917). Look at the empty floor at the lower right: the dancers are pushed to the left, the back and the right edge.

Look at

• An empty stretch of floorboards runs from the lower right back into the room.
• Figures crowd the left and right, and some are cut off by the frame.
• A double bass and a music stand at the lower left cut into the view.
• The white skirts are light, feathery strokes against the green wall.

• The teacher leaning on a stick is the ballet master Jules Perrot.

Image: The Metropolitan Museum of Art Open Access · CC0