Edgar Degas
, French, 1834-1917
Title
Two Harlequins (Les deux arlequins)Datec.1885
MediumPastel on paper
Dimensions
32 x 24 cm
Signedlower left: Degas
Credit LineBequeathed, Mr E. Martyn, 1924
Object numberNGI.2741
DescriptionThe juxtaposition of brilliantly costumed performers with the mundane interiors of rehearsal spaces was a constant source of fascination to Degas. Here Degas depicts two harlequins wearing the colourful diamond-patterned leotards, black masks and dark caps associated with their Commedia dell’Arte characters. The chief characteristics traditionally ascribed to the Harlequin were agility and acrobatic skill. Here however Degas turns once again to the favoured motif of dancers resting, mid-rehearsal. Their gestures convey an ease and intimacy indicative of the long hours that dancers spent living and working in each other’s company.
ProvenanceSaint-Albin Paris; acquired Galerie Durand-Ruel 1885, Paris 1885; acquired Edward Martyn; bequeathed, Mr E. Martyn, 1924Exhibition HistoryLoan Exhibition of Modern Continental Paintings, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin, 1944, no. 24
A Loan Exhibition of Drawings from the National Gallery of Ireland in Aid of the Florentine Art Treasures Fund, Wildenstein & Co., London, 31 May 1967 - 7 July 1967, no. 89
Drawings from the National Gallery of Ireland in Aid of the American Benefactors of the National Gallery of Ireland Fund, 16 November 1967 - 30 December 1967
Degas 1879, National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh, 13 August 1979 - 30 September 1979, no. 36
Impressionism in Britain and Ireland, The Hugh Lane Gallery, Dublin, 2 June 1995 - 30 July 1995
The Art of Pastel, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin, 7 September 1996 - 6 October 1996
Impressionist Interiors, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin, 10 May 2008 - 10 August 2008, no. 7