Degas was known in part for his abundance of pastel drawing of nude women bathing; he often repeated the same thematic pieces over and over again and was recorded saying, "One must do the same subject over again ten times, a hundred times." After a seemingly endless repetition of the female nude at her toilette he decided towards the end of his life to take the subject of a bathing woman outside. He favored the light found indoors, but wanted to experiment the atmosphere outdoors, perhaps inspired by Renoir's dreamy women. Instead of grooming, one of the women rests in the grass, her head pillowed on her folded arms, resting her eyes while her companion examines her own foot.
SKU: 10524
Creator: Edgar Degas
Date: c.1886-90
Original Medium: pastel on paper
Location: Musée d'Orsay