Description
Edgar Degas’s Head of a Woman in Profile places a right-facing head beneath a broad, dark hat. The hair and shoulder form a compact silhouette against a mottled ground. The profile supplies the image with a clear organizing edge, while the darker headwear gives it a contrasting mass. There is little need for elaborate setting: the relationship between face, hat and surrounding tone is enough to sustain attention.
Produced in 1879–80, the work combines softground etching, aquatint and drypoint. This range of techniques allows drawn-looking marks and tonal passages to meet within the same impression. Degas uses the print not simply to record a likeness but to explore how a head can emerge through different kinds of emphasis. Its close viewpoint turns a modest subject into a concentrated encounter, with the outline of the profile carrying a distinctive human presence.
Read our guide to giclée prints or browse the Edgar Degas collection.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.