Degas: A Dialogue of Difference

This richly illustrated volume explores the pictorial world of the man whose formal innovations, commitment to realism and exploration of both the light and dark sides of contemporary society foreshadowed the art of the 20th century. Werner Hofmann brings his own penetrating and often surprising new analyses to many of Degass best-known works, interspersed with insights into the artists bourgeois background. His artistic trajectory is placed within the context of the major currents of 19th-century art, with David, Ingres, Delacroix, Courbet and the Impressionists among the key points of reference. In this way, we see not only the traditions that influenced him but also his striking individuality and spirit of innovation, which forged a new artistic path into the 20th century.