2916 - Edgar Degas (1834 Paris – 1917, ibid.) after

Edgar Degas (1834 Paris – 1917, ibid.) after "Petite danseuse de quatorze ans." Original title Bronze, patinated in brown and green. Posthumous, contemporary cast, 21st century; A young ballerina standing on a rectangular plinth, her hands clasped behind her back. The “Little Dancer” is the only sculpture that Degas ever exhibited during his lifetime—in 1881 at the Impressionist exhibition. Degas created it between 1875 and 1880 as a painted wax figure with real hair, a satin hair bow, a tulle ballet dress, and a bodice. When he exhibited it in a display case in 1881, its lifelike quality caused an art scandal. It was not until after the artist’s death, beginning in 1921, that the first bronze casts were made at the request of his heirs. Early examples can be found, among other places, at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris and the Metropolitan Museum in New York. Height: 107 cm. After Edgar Degas (1834–1917). Bronze with brown and green patina. Posthumous, contemporary cast, 21st century.