Degas, Edgar

Hilaire Germain Edgar Degas (Paris, 19 July 1834 - Paris, 27 September 1917) was a French painter and sculptor. Although he took part in the Impressionist exhibitions, his position within the movement was always distinctive. Rather than painting outdoors, he often preferred scenes filtered through memory, and he developed a highly personal language centered on movement, modern life, and unusual compositions. His art shares with Impressionism a new sensitivity to light and contemporary subjects, while retaining an independent character.