Sleepyhead Degas Dreams
As tired as I am from a busy week, and a full Saturday of posing for Dan Gheno’s painting classes at the National Academy, I feel the desire to post something before I turn in for an awesome night’s sleep and rest my weary legs.
My mother – the artist in the family- is a huge fan of Degas, so I write this post affectionately for her. Degas was a man of many muses, mostly dancers and prostitutes. This pastel painting depicts a woman brushing her hair. I love those paintings of people in the middle of an ordinary act. A banal task gradually transforms into beauty when an artist picks up his brush and captures it. I’d like to pose like that sometime; bathing, getting dressed, etc. This scenario of a woman combing her hair would be fun to emulate. Except for maybe the prostitute part. I’ll pass on that! Here’s Degas:
