Marguerite, soeur de l'artiste

Image credit: The New Art Gallery Walsall

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Degas was the eldest of five children and often enlisted his younger siblings as sitters for his earliest experiments with portraiture. Marguerite is said to have been his favourite, and was about 14 years old when this portrait was painted. Degas admired her fine singing voice, and she bore a striking resemblance to him, with her distinctive nose and slightly asymmetrical eyes. Despite the close bond between them, the subdued palette and dark background lend the image a sombre mood, and pay homage to the severest traditions of European portraiture. Dressed for school, with her hair tightly arranged, Marguerite has an air of stoicism and melancholy. By painting the head large within a small canvas, Degas brings the viewer into close proximity with the sitter.

The New Art Gallery Walsall

Walsall

Title

Marguerite, soeur de l'artiste

Date

1855–1857

Medium

oil on canvas

Measurements

H 33 x W 25 cm

Accession number

GR.33

Acquisition method

gift from Kathleen Epstein, 1973

Work type

Painting

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Normally on display at

The New Art Gallery Walsall

Gallery Square, Walsall, West Midlands WS2 8LG England

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