How Would You Describe Dancers at the Barre?

Hilaire-Germain-Edgar Degas, Dancers at the Barre, ca. 1900. Oil on canvas, 51 ¼ x 38 ½ in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. Acquired 1944.

Earlier this week, I started my spotlight tour by asking the group to collectively come up with ten words or phrases to describe Degas’s Dancers at the Barre. Here’s what they shared:

Bright

Childhood

Delicious

Flexible

Floating

Grace

Lonely

Orange

Painful

Stretch

What word would you use? Leave a comment, and let me know.

2 thoughts on “How Would You Describe Dancers at the Barre?

  1. Interesting anatomy! Front dancer’s standing leg appears to be coming from other than her torso. Ballet being much about illusion allows this beautful painting to speak to possibilities beyond body limits. Bravo!

Leave a Reply