Jockey in Blue on a Chestnut Horse (Primary Title)
Edgar Degas, French, 1834 - 1917 (Artist)
This modestly sized sketch is an experiment in arresting motion that is similar in intention to Degas’s practice of modeling horses in wax. The composition focuses the viewer’s attention on the horse’s movement as it is steered to the right. The artist made multiple attempts to capture the vigorous force of the animal while a jockey imposes an abrupt change of direction on its movement. This motif justifies the bold decentering of the principal figures to the left side of composition, because it effectively reinforces the dynamic tension that indicates the rider’s trajectory. This impression is reinforced by the serpentine flow of the river in the background.
2019-2021: Van Gogh, Monet, Degas, and Their Times: The Mellon Collection of French Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Frist Art Museum, Nashville, TN, February 2 - May 5, 2019; Mississippi Museum of Art, Jackson, MS, April 4, 2020 - January 10, 2021
2018: "Country Life: Masterpieces from the Mellon Collection of MVFA", Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature, Paris, France, September 4 - December 2, 2018
2018: "Van Gogh, Monet, Degas: The Mellon Collection of French Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts", The Frick Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, March 17 - July 15, 2018; Oklahoma Museum of Art, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, June 22 - September 22, 2019
A Day at the Races: Manet, Degas, and Images of the Horse, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., April 12 – July 12, 1998
Some object records are not complete and do not reflect VMFA's full and current knowledge. VMFA makes routine updates as records are reviewed and enhanced.
