Degas

Our drawing comes from a sketchbook that Degas used during his travels in Italy from 1856 to 1857 and which is currently kept at the Louvre Museum (inv. no. RF 5634). The origin of our drawing is attested by the traces of red chalk it left on the reverse of folio 19 (inv. no. RF 5634,31), where our figure can be clearly identified, in reverse, as well as by the traces left by the inscription and the separate study of hands. The absence of the drawing that caused this impression has been noted not only in the description of the folio in question, but also by Theodore Reff in his catalogue of Degas’s sketchbooks, referenced under folio 19v: ‘faintly imprinted with the form of a red chalk drawing of a seated woman facing three-quarters to the right, page vertical, that must have been on the facing page (now removed)’.¹ Physical comparison of our drawing with the sketchbook has confirmed this hypothesis, demonstrating that the paper and dimensions of our drawing are the same as those of the sketchbook pages.

The latter was used by Degas in Naples and Rome from July 1856 until the end of that year². This proposal is based on the few inscriptions found in the notebook, notably “Naples, 18 July” (inv. no. RF 5634, 1) and “Capodimente, 10 September” (inv. no. RF 5634, 30). These two inscriptions correspond with the informations given in the Giornale del Regno delle Due Sicilie, the register of arrivals and departures at the port of Naples, which tell us that Degas arrived in Naples from Marseille on 17 July 1856 and left for Civitavecchia (the main port of Rome) on 7 October 1856.³ The same register tells us that Degas returned from Rome on 1 August 1857, thus placing Degas’s stay in Rome from the winter of 1856 to the summer of 1857.⁴ This corresponds with the date and location of our drawing, as Alvito is a small village near Rome. The use of our sketchbook in Rome is confirmed by the reverse of folio 1 of the album (inv. no. RF 5634, 2), where we find a copy of a Roman fresco by Domenichino (at the Oratorio di Sant’Andrea presso San Gregorio al Celio) as well as notes concerning sculptures and paintings at the Museum of the Capitol and the Doria-Pamphilij Gallery.

In several pages of this sketchbook, one finds the same ethnographic attention that Degas devotes to figures and their attire, so clearly evident in our sheet. The artist’s desire to record Italian modes of dress with precision is particularly apparent, for instance, on folio 7 of the album, whose annotated descriptions are strikingly close to those of our drawing in their content, handwriting, and overall layout.

Degas sketched many Italian women during his early stays in Italy. Some examples are particularly relevant to our drawing, such as the drawing of the Roman woman on folio 33 of the same sketchbook as our drawing, where we find similarities in the monumental pose and the bold and heavy lines (albeit in a different medium). Another particularly notable comparison is the black chalk portrait currently held at the Baltimore Museum of Art (inv. BMA 1950.12.457), in which we find the same model wearing the same headdress.

Another key factor in the attribution of our drawing to Edgar Degas is its provenance. Our drawing was found amongst a set of photographs of the Valpinçon family in their château of Ménil-Hubert, sometimes accompanied by Edgar Degas. Degas had very strong ties with the Valpinçon family, dating back to his high school years, when he became friends with Paul Valpinçon (1834–1894), whom he painted in profile in 1862 (Minneapolis Institute of Art, inv. no. 74.28). On the back of our drawing was a sheet of paper with a photograph of a young man, annotated Louis Valpinçon, as well as several photographs of Le Ménil-Hubert. Beyond the well-known links between Degas and Le Ménil-Hubert (there are numerous photographs of the latter in front of the château or in the park), the same batch of photos in which our drawing was found also contained photos of Louis Valpinçon, probably Paul’s younger brother, sitting on the painter’s lap, as well as photos of Paul with his wife Marguerite and their daughter Hortense, who was also painted by Degas.⁵

This work is sold with a certificate from Brame & Lorenceau.

Philippe d’Orléans