NEW ORLEANS—The Newcomb Art Gallery at Tulane University presents Edgar Degas: The Private Impressionist, Works on Paper by the Artist and his Circle.
Featuring drawings and prints plus photographs, monotypes, correspondence and sculpture from a single private collection, the exhibition runs Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2015 – Sunday, May 24, 2015.
The show is co-curated by Robert Flynn Johnson, Curator Emeritus of the Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and Louise Siddons Ph.D., Assistant Professor and Curator of Collections at Oklahoma State University, Stillwater.
Illuminating Degas’ artistic genius as well as his personal associations, whether family members or the many writers and artists whom he counted as friends, the exhibition presents works that are often personal in nature.
“Through his art, his words, and the circle of his friends and colleagues represented in the exhibition, the private persona of this elusive artist may emerge,” said co-curator Johnson.
In addition to three rare self-portraits, the collection includes depictions of his father, brother and housekeeper as well as friends Édouard Manet and Mary Cassatt. Enriching the exhibition are more than forty rare works of art on paper by artistic peers Paul Cézanne, Jean-Léon Gérôme, Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, Gustave Moreau and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec among others.
“This selection that represents the circle of Degas is gratifyingly rich,” Johnson observed. “It contains the work of various individuals whose association with the master is rarely noted except by scholars.”
The exhibition also features drawings after antique sculpture and Old Masters, such as Mantegna and Michelangelo, and a group of brilliant color aquatints after Degas monotypes commissioned by Degas’ friend and dealer Ambroise Vollard. The works have never before been exhibited together publicly and provide an exploration into the art and persona of one of the most significant artists in the history of art.
A full color catalog with a preface by Degas expert, Ann Dumas, Curator of The Royal Academy of Art, London has been published.
The exhibition was organized by Landau Traveling Exhibitions, Los Angeles, CA, in association with Denenberg Fine Arts, West Hollywood, CA.
EVENTS
Opening Reception
Wednesday, Feb. 18
Members’ Preview Hour: 5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Public Reception: 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Woodward Way Breezeway, Woldenberg Art Center
Collector’s Talk
Thursday, Feb. 19
“A Journey Not A Destination: Chasing The Art of Edgar Degas for Forty Years” by Robert Flynn Johnson, Curator Emeritus, Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts, Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco
6:00 p.m.
Freeman Auditorium, Woldenberg Art Center
Panel Discussion
Wednesday, March 18
“The Status of the Copy and Posthumous Work in the Museum” with Stephanie Porras, Assistant Professor Art History, Newcomb Art Department; Michael Kuczynski, Associate Professor of English, Tulane University; Russell Lord, Freeman Family Curator of Photographs, New Orleans Museum of Art
6:00 p.m.
Freeman Auditorium, Woldenberg Art Center
Degas Lecture
Wednesday, April 22
Carol Armstrong, Professor of Art History, Yale University co-sponsored by the Newcomb Art Department
6:00 p.m.
Freeman Auditorium, Woldenberg Art Center
Rare Degas Works Of Art At Newcomb Art Gallery
