Degas, Edgar (1834-1917)
Chanteuse de Café / Chanteuse au Gant (Café Singer / Singer with a Glove)
c.1878
Pastel on canvas, 53.2 x 41 cm
Fogg Museum, Cambridge, MA
Because pastel paints can fade, this extraordinary work can be exhibited only for short periods of time.The colors of pastels that Degas chose are surprising: areas of black on the glove are matched with blacks in the background, and the metallic gold elements of the stage decoration enhance this darkness. The pose of the singer is bold, with her mouth open in mid-song, and her gloved hand that hovers before it indicates the physical effort of her performance.
During the late 1870s, Degas and his friend the American artist Mary Cassatt were both working on pastels that depicted scenes from theaters in Paris. These public sites of urban leisure embodied the values of France’s newly established Third Republic, including the importance of secular entertainment and capitalist consumption. Although French women did not gain the right to vote until 1945, they were more visible in society during the 1870s, as artists, performers, and members of the audience at musical events. (Fogg Museum)