Degas at the Met

This past week I taught science camp at Roswell Park and Rec. We painted each day to learn about opaque and transparent light. We used matte medium with acrylic paint on 8.5 x 11" canvas boards to experiment. I instructed the children to paint fish, butterflies or flowers because we could experiment with color mixing on parts of the fish, butterfly or flower.

I did not allow the children to use black paint because I don't use black and also because the masters did not either. We talked about this. I mentioned Degas and did not have time to further discuss his art. But, having just visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, I have just the photograph to share.

Pictured here is Edgar Degas' oil on canvas, on the left, titled The Dance Class, 1874. And to the right, is The Little Fourteen-Year-Old Dancer, one of his models out of wax that he created later in life as his eyesight waned. There were many of Degas' ballet images in the Met, 149 total works including a variety of other subjects.