Thomson, Richard. The Private Degas. New York: Thames and Hudson, 1987.
This book is a fantastic well of information on the working methods of Edgar Degas. The author avoids describing Degas final works and instead goes into a thorough study of Degas working methods through sketches, drafts, and copies. The book emphasizes Degas studio practice and conceptions of picture.
In the introduction to the book, Thomson states that "Degas believed that any serious artist should have a deep and sympathetic understanding of earlier art, and would reap its full benefits through copying"(9). This observation can be summed up with a statement by Degas late in his life to the art dealer Ambroise Vollard. He said, 'One must copy and recopy the masters, and it is only having given every proof of being a good copyist that permission could resonably be given to paint a radish from life' (9). For Degas, even after success, to say this statement and also keep his respect for the masters explains that his working methods were based on a rigid continuing practice of studying and reevaluating the works of the masters. Degas father, Auguste de Gas, wrote to Degas in 1858 with this advice, 'One must detect and capture the artifices of the great masters, but shrug off all restraint in front of nature and represent it solely by one's own inspiration' (13). Degas, later in life repeated his father's words by saying, 'The secret is to follow the advice the great masters give you in their works while doing something different from them' (13). Thomson explains, "It is important to remember that in the nineteenth century studying the old masters as a mature artist was not considered demeaning or unimaginative but necessarily challenging and restorative" (15).
It's hard for me understand why art of the past is not highly regarded by the contemporary artists of today. It is as if artists today have taken everything from the good to the bad in art and thrown it all out. These seem like acts of rebellion and self-centeredness. Artists today can learn so much from both the good and bad art of the past. By good and bad art, I mean art that is personally pleasing or not pleasing to the artist. I completely agree with Degas' ideas and practices in copying and studying art and artists of the past. It is our artistic heritage and is there for us to learn from. Did the artists of the past create in vain? Are we too good or too advanced in our "modern society" to look upon the past for answers in art. Is the art of the past too "primitive" for us to view as artists with respect?
Degas knew the answers to all of these questions. He was able to take the art of the past and twist it to his own temperament and his own time. By taking compositions and images of the past that have stood the test of time and filtering them to become his own subjects of modern life, Degas was able to break the barrier or link the art of the past with the art of his day; a quickly changing art for a quickly changing world.
This book has given me many ideas to experiment with in my own art. Degas use of the photograph, for example, for graphic references is a good example of his willingness to let technology aid him in the realization of his art. This has given me the idea to use a VCR as a way of collecting thousands of images in a short time and freezing them to sketch from and use in my own works. The VCR can become the ultimate sketchbook and I believe that if Degas were alive today, he would have exploited it to its fullest potential.