The Bathers 1885 - 1895

Editor: This is Edgar Degas' "The Bathers," likely created between 1885 and 1895. It's currently at the Art Institute of Chicago, rendered in pastel and charcoal on paper. The overall impression is quite intimate, almost voyeuristic. The blurred lines make me wonder, what story is Degas trying to tell? Curator: Story, hmm? I feel a little wary of stories. Maybe, rather, it is the whisper of lived existence he captures here, like catching a snatched breath. Look at the immediacy of line, that nervous, energetic stroke – the way the colours just breathe on the paper. It's a hot summers day, isn't it? Editor: Definitely a feeling of warmth! The way the figures seem almost intertwined with the landscape. Was Degas interested in plein-air painting? I thought his work was more studio-based. Curator: Ah, well! Degas was certainly a studio creature, more moth than butterfly! This isn’t really "plein air" in the pure, impressionistic sense, I'd suggest. More a distillation of it, if you catch my drift. Think of him, perhaps, remembering some outdoor moment while he sketches. Do you feel like it is posed or spontaneus? Editor: It does have that candid feeling, but then again the nudes... maybe I'm thinking about it too much. It's definitely more complicated than it seems! Curator: Complicated? Delightfully so, wouldn't you say? But what is an artwork *for*, if not for entanglement, dear thing? Art makes us consider. Makes us wonder. Editor: It really does, doesn't it? Thanks! I am glad that it felt more like a moment being capture rather than a depiction. I feel that's the mood that stood out. Curator: Just so! Maybe now we’ll both go outside and capture a snatch of something, what do you say?