Critique

“The Rehearsal” can be seen as Edgar Degas’ best work. It portrays an adage in a regular ballet class. Painted sometime around 1873 to 1878, the oil on canvas composition is one of Degas’ famous ballet paintings. He is categorized as an impressionist painter who concentrated on the general impression produced by a scene and the use of unmixed primary colors and small strokes to stimulate actual reflected light. The composition “The Rehearsal” is now situated at the Fogg Art Museum in Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Degas’ composition depicts a typical ballet adage in the center. It is only painted in earth tones, which sets a relaxing state, and there is a definite contrast between the dancers, who are in white, and the violinist, who is in black. As in impressionist works, natural lighting is used, most emphasized from the light emanating from the large windows. Inside of the studio, it is somewhat dark, while outside, it is bright, which could suggest a darker side to the art of ballet, such as working so hard to the point of uncomfortable pain. The painting is from the perspective of a corner of the studio, and all of the dancers seem to be spaced to the left of the composition. The dancers are placed in juxtaposition even though there is extra space in the studio. The focal point of Degas’ composition is the dancer who is closest to the viewer. Her form appears to be the clearest and the viewer is only able to see her face. She also has the darkest shadow and the lightest pigment of pink shoes and tights. Furthermore, the colors of the ribbons, flowers, and bows of the dancers create harmony from their pleasing combination of colors. Degas’ attractive color scheme, use of natural lighting, and contrast compose an effective piece; however, the blurriness of it makes it weaker.
Nevertheless, Edgar Degas’ “The Rehearsal” still leaves many unanswered questions. Firstly, one would wonder why the concentration of the picture is focused to the left of the composition. Perhaps this is because the eye is more attracted towards the left. Maybe it is because Degas wanted to emphasize the natural lighting from the large window. Also, one would question why there is no instructor present in the picture. Perhaps this is because the dancers were unattended which would also explain why some dancers are not paying attention, or the instructor was out of the painter’s view. Lastly, one may ask why the studio is so dark. Is Degas aiming to imply something by doing so, or is he only attempting to accentuate the natural lighting. Degas’ work utilizes the impressionist’s skill in order to portray a life like adagio using natural lighting.