Grand Arabesque Third Time (First Arabesque Penchee) c. 1885/1890 Pigmented beeswaffe

GRANDE ARABESQUE THIRD TIME GRANDE ARABESQUE THIRD TIME GRANDE ARABESQUE THIRD TIME Name of the Student Name of the Instructor Name of the Course Due Data Answer 1 2 Introduction 2 Description 3 Technique 3 Material 3 Meaning of the Object 4 Conclusion 5 References 6 Grande Arabesque, Third Time (First Arabesque Penchee) c. 1885/1890 Pigmented beeswax, clay, metal armature, cork, on wooden base overall without base: 42 * 31.8

Running head: GRANDE ARABESQUE THIRD TIME
GRANDE ARABESQUE THIRD TIME
Name of the Student
Name of the Instructor
Name of the Course
Due Data

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Table of Contents
Answer 1....................................................................................................................................2
Introduction............................................................................................................................2
Description.............................................................................................................................3
Technique...............................................................................................................................3
Material..................................................................................................................................3
Meaning of the Object............................................................................................................4
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................5
References..................................................................................................................................6

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Grande Arabesque, Third Time (First Arabesque Penchee) c. 1885/1890
Pigmented beeswax, clay, metal armature, cork, on wooden base overall without base: 42 *
31.8 * 55.5 cm, height: 40.6 cm
Answer 1
Introduction
The figure is made with wax and has metal coating on it. It is the work of Edgar
Degas. He was inspired by the artists of the Paris Opera; he wanted to depict their excellence
and their form. Most of his work is influenced by the dancers, their poses and their dedication
and elegance. Portraying the dancers, his works capture the movement of the dancers and
their skill (Locheed 87-99). He is also known as one of the founders of the impressionism, yet
he prefers the term realist. The statue is of a bare female figure who is doing the Arab
Penchee. This pose is also known as the grand arabesque in ballet. This posture requires a
great deal of power and consistency as one has to stand on a foot, stretching the other leg
high and straight as much as possible. This was a wax model made by Degas between 1882
and 1895, and after the death of Degas, Adrien-Aurelien Hebrard covered it with Bronze
(Vinson).
The technique and material have a huge impact on the figure. The techniques and
materials that are used subtly bring out the deeper meaning of the art. The colours used, the
brush strokes, the dark and light colour pattern and the paint used all have an impact on the
painting; the same can be applied to a sculptor, the technique used to make it the materials
that are there in the figure all have an impact on the meaning that can be understood by the
audience. Each one of the audience has a different manner in which they perceive the art and
the materials and techniques that are used make the perception more strong and unique. In

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this paper, the impact of experimentation with technique and materials on the figure will be
explored.
Description
The statue depicts a naked female figure, who is portraying the grand arabesque
posture in the ballet. The lady is standing on the right foot fixed on the ground and the left leg
is soaring behind it, straight and with pointed toes. The figure is bending a little with one leg
on the ground and the other in the air behind it. Both the arms are straight and spread out,
with the right hand almost touching the ground and the left one spread on the side. The figure
is placed on a small roundish base with it being shaded in rich dark colouring.
Technique
Degas, just like his peers, was affected by Japanese prints. They inspired him to
experiment with asymmetrical compositions, organisations and unorthodox perspectives. His
portrayal of fleeting moments and Parisian life contributed to the Impressionism movement
of the nineteenth century. He was an expert at sketching and at capturing the feelings of his
subjects. Degas worked with a wide variety of methods, and gained fame particularly for his
use of pastels to portray the figure in a lifelike form with a practical sculpture. His sculptures
were admired for their naturalism, with this statue being regarded as the most lively and
graceful. He used his sculptures as subjects for his sketches, which required them to be
lifelike and graceful, fully capturing the form of the artist in their poses. Degas was more
interested in the paintings and pastels that he made with his drawings than he was in his
sculptures (Reed). For him the sculptures were merely a tool and their lifelikeness and grace
only a necessity for the benefit of his paintings. He was careful to make them as lifelike as
possible using the contemporary techniques of naturalism and imitation (Shelley, 128-145).

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Material
Degas made the “Grande Arabesque, Third Time” statue with beeswax and cork. A
metal coating was then applied to the figure to preserve its structure. The statue itself was
sculpted with the wax with the cork used to give it support. Its base is made of wood. A
bronze layer coats the statue giving it a feel of grandeur and preserving its structure and
poise. Degas originally sculpted his figures with wax as he only intended to use them as
models for his drawings. The use of the beeswax and cork was popular during the
impressionism, even if the term was rejected by Degas, he was still affected by the movement
and most of his work and specially in this figure. The era impacted the materials that were
used in the figure and the materials impacted the meaning of the figure. This statue was later
coated with bronze to preserve its figure as it had been found in a state of disrepair due to
Degas’ lack of care for it after he had completed his figure (Cojanu). The bronze that was
used on the statue to preserve it was after the death of Degas by Adrien-Aurelien Hebrard.
Meaning of the Object
Degas was interested by the excellence and the order of the artists of the Paris Opera.
This inspired him to depict an artist playing the Arab penchee, which is a form that requires
immense power (Moreau, 64). It requires the performer to remain affixed on one foot and
raise the other leg as high and straight as might be possible under that condition. The statue is
a portrayal of Degas’ fascination with the Parisian life and his awe of the grace and poise of
the artists in the Opera. This is what inspired him to depict, in his sculpture, one of the
hardest postures that is performed by a ballerina (Smith). The statue is a symbolism of the
perseverance and dedication of the artists that allows them to perform consistently and
regularly with the same poise every time. The statue that he created portrayed the beauty and
strength that is required by the dancers to perform the choreography with utmost poise and
elegance while standing on a leg and stretching herself. The statue is considered to be one of

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the best works by Degas. His fondness of ballet and dancers can be clearly seen in this figure.
The inspiration that he gathered from the dancers and ballerinas can be seen in all his
paintings and figures. This figure symbolises the strength and the beauty that the dancers
have.
Degas used beeswax and cork in his work to symbolise the softness that the dancers
have as well as the strength they have at the same time. The materials had a huge impact on
the way that it was perceived by the people. The general masses all admired by the work of
Degas and could relate and understand the meaning behind the figure that Degas had
intended. The statue then to be preserved was covered in bronze for it to be sustained over a
longer period of time. The materials used thus can be seen as providing a deeper meaning to
the figure more than what it was intended by the sculptor, Degas.
The impressionist period is characterised by using minimal materials to bring out the
meaning of a work. The figure is made by using beeswax and cork and is minimal yet has a
huge impact on how the figure is perceived to be beautiful and elegant yet strong and bold.
Conclusion
From the above discussion, it can be concluded that the technique and material that
are used for a painting or a sculpture have a huge impact on the meaning of the object. The
technique that Degas used was inspired by the Japanese prints. The Japanese prints can be
seen as soft and used to capture the movement and the softness of the lady dancing. This
technique is known to bring out the life like features of the figure out. The figure made by
Degas looks lifelike and captures the beauty of dancer and how they elegantly perform the
most difficult steps. The materials that are used by the sculptor also has a lot of impact on the
figure. The materials bring out a certain essence of the figure that the creator wanted. It helps
the artist bring out meanings from different ways and in a unique method. The impact that the

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experimentation of technique and materials on the figure is colossal yet is subtle in its own
way. Degas used the female body figure to make it look beautiful and the bare body and the
posture of the statue made it more attractive towards the people. It was a wonderful creation
made by Degas and the artists of Paris Opera made a mark on the mind of Degas. The statue
was made with bronze and it was mesmerising to the get a look on the statue. The ballet
position of the statue stands on the right foot and the body is inclined towards the ground
made it a masterpiece and it also shows the balance of the figure hold by the statue. The art of
creation holds an expression of liveliness on the mind of the audience.

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Works Citied
Cojanu, Cristina. Arabesque: Recovered Fragments of What Could Have Been a Novel of
Manners. Diss. Royal College of Art, 2013.
Locheed, Jessica. "Beyond the form: the ineffable essence of Degas' sculpture." Sculpture
Journal 18.1 (2009): 86-99.
Moreau, Gustave. "ORNAMENT AND THE ARABESQUE FROM LINE TO MELODY."
Details of Consequence: Ornament, Music, and Art in Paris (2013): 64.
Reed, Deborah. Degas's motion pictures. Diss. Texas Christian University, 2013.
Shelley, Marjorie. "A Disputed Pastel Reclaimed for Degas: Two Dancers, Half-Length."
Metropolitan Museum Journal 51.1 (2016): 128-145.
Smith, Isabel. The politics of location in Edgar Degas's depictions of the Paris Opéra. Diss.
American University, 2016.
Vinson, Heather J. Repetitions: Memory and Making Degas's Ballet Classroom Series. Diss.
2013.