Edgar Degas / Colors & their moods

Ms. Kolendowicz

ART I

What is gesture drawing?

• Gesture drawing is a quickly sketched drawing, focusing on the form

Edgar Degas(July 19, 1834 – September 27, 1917)

- Edgar Degar is a famous French artist who is known as one of the founders of the Impressionism movement

- He is known for painting dancers in movement

Degas in 1850

Degas: Early Years

- Degas was born in Paris, France on July 19, 1834 to a semi-wealthy family.

- Degas was the eldest of five children- His mother died when he was 13- By the time Degas graduated from school at age

18, he already had an artist studio in his house. (He graduated with a degree in Literature)

- After graduation, Degas registered as a copyist at the Louvre museum, however his dad expected him to go to law school

- He enrolled at the University of Paris but applied himself very little to his studies

- In 1855, Degas met Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres . He never forgot his advice:

"Draw lines, young man, and still more

lines, both from life and from memory,

and you will become a good artist.“

- Soon after, Degas started at École des Beaux-Arts, where he studied drawing

- After the Franco-Prussian war, Degas moved to New Orleans to be with family (1873)

- “A Cotton Office in New Orleans” 1870, was the only work which was bought by a museum during Degas’ lifetime.

- Once he moved back to Paris, Degas depended on income from the sale of his work

- He became a part of a group of artists who were known as “Impressionists”. He had little in common with them, often mocking them for mostly painting the outdoors.

Degas: Later Life

• In the 1880s, Degas found a new passion of photography. He used numerous pictures of ballet dancers as reference to his paintings

• Later in his life, Degas became more isolated due to his belief that no painter could have a personal life.

• Degas never married or had children. He was nearly blind at the end of his life, where he was often seen restlessly walking the streets of Paris until his death in September 1917.

Degas’ Dancers

What do colors mean in a painting?

Color Meaningshttp://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/meaning-of-colors.html

• Color can be seen as a form of non-verbal communication

• In paintings, colors depict certain moods

RED

• Red is the color of energy, passion, action, ambition and determination. It is also the color of anger

• Red is warm and energizing.

• It is often used to express love (think Valentine’s Day)

ORANGE

• Orange is the color of social communication and optimism. From a negative color meaning it is also a sign of pessimism and superficiality.

• It radiates warmth and happiness. It is the color of adventure

• Helps in strength during emotional difficult times, assisting recovery of grief (bouncing back to normal)

• Refers to physical confidence and adventure

• Aids in new ideas

YELLOW

• Yellow is known for the mind and intellect

• It is happy, optimistic and cheerful. However it can also suggest impatience, criticism and cowardice.

• Original and creative

• Can be considered nervous because it is vibrant, fast moving and can cause anxiety

• Non-emotional because it is associated with the head (mentalness) rather than the heart

GREEN

• Green is the color of balance and growth. It can mean self-reliance (both positive and negative)

• Known for growth, renewal, rebirth (think springtime)

• It is helpful and shows good judgment (knowing between right and wrong)

• Prosperity and finance

BLUE

• Blue is the color of trust and peace. It can suggest loyalty and integrity

• Sincere, reserved, quiet and does not like attention to be drawn

• Seeks peace, tranquility, relaxation

• Color of the spirit and religious study

• Non-threatening

PURPLE

• Purple is the color of the imagination. It can be creative and individual or immature and impractical

• union of body and soul creating a balance between our physical and our spiritual energies

• Need for escape to a fantasy world, away from reality

• Known as a color of royalty

BROWN

• The color brown is a friendly yet serious, down-to-earth color that relates to security, protection, comfort and material wealth

• Can cause feelings of sadness and isolation

• Practical and comfortable

GRAY

• Gray is the color of compromise. It is unemotional, unattached and can be indecisive

• A solid and stable color, creating a sense of calm and composure

• Can be conservative, boring and depressing

• Loneliness and isolation with very little colors to balance out the gray areas

WHITE

• White is the most complete, and pure.

• Depicts innocence and wholeness

• Represents new beginnings, growth, and creativity

• Protection and encouragement, offering a sense of peace and calm, comfort and hope, helping alleviate emotional upsets.

BLACK

• Black is the color of the hidden, the secretive and the unknown, creating an air of mystery. It keeps things bottled up inside, hidden from the world

• means power and control, hanging on to information and things rather than giving out to others.

• Intimidating, unfriendly and unapproachable

• Too much can cause depression and a negative environment

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So can you depict the mood of the following paintings, just by

looking at the colors used?

Edgar Degas, L’Absinthe, 1876, oil on canvas

Vincent VanGogh, “Sunflowers”,oil on canvas

Edward Burne-Jones, “Psyche’s Wedding”, painting, 1895

William Hogarth, “Marriage à-la-mode” (Shortly after marriage), 1743, oil on canvas

Caravaggio