The extraordinary story behind Degass groundbreaking painting of the African-American circus performer Miss La La. Edgar Degass Miss La La at the Cirque Fernando (1879) is one of only two paintings by the artist representing people of colour. Miss La La, born Anna Albertine Olga Brown to a white Prussian mother and African-American father, was a renowned performer of extraordinary daring in fin-de-siècle Paris. Exploring the fascinating story behind Degass painting, this is the first in-depth study to focus on the sitters identity, presenting new research on her life and career, as well as unpublished photographic material tracing her tour across Europe. The book also analyses the genesis of Degass work, from his rapid sketches completed on the spot to his more elaborate preparatory drawings and pastels. The son of a Creole mother from New Orleans, Degas travelled to Louisiana in 187273, which was to have a lasting impact on his art. This book examines the artists complex attitudes to ethnicity in relation to his own family background, and the representation of multiracial people in late nineteenth-century France. Published by National Gallery Global/Distributed by Yale University Press Exhibition Schedule: National Gallery, London (June 6September 1, 2024)
Prelims (half title/title/colophon, contents)
Directors foreword
Preface: Miss La La, Black model (Denise Murrell & Isolde Pludermacher)
Essays
Degas and Miss La La: genesis of the picture and overview of the paintings
history (Anne Robbins)
Imagery of the acrobat in fin-de-siècle Paris (Chiara Di Stefano)
Degas, New Orleans and the question of race (Darcy Grimaldo Grigsby)
Catalogue section
With 6 short section introductions, followed by images of the 45 exhibited
works.
1. Miss La La: Background and success (Laurie Fierstein)
2. Cirque Fernando in Paris: circus and avant-garde (Chiara Di Stefano)
3. Watching, drawing, posing Miss La La: elaboration of the painting (Anne
Robbins)
4. Miss La La, 1879: from performance to exhibition (Anne Robbins)
5. Degas and the Black world (Darcy Grimaldo Grigsby)
6. The paintings afterlife: exhibitions, travels and influence
(Christopher Riopelle)
Endmatter
Chronology (Anne Robbins, Laurie Fierstein and Chiara Di Stefano)
Notes
Bibliography
List of lenders, Acknowledgements
Anne Robbins is a Curator of Paintings at the Musée dOrsay, Paris. Chiara Di Stefano is Associate Curator of Post 1800 Paintings at the National Gallery, London.
Laurie Fierstein is an independent researcher, currently writing a book about Anna Albertine Olga Brown Woodson and Theophilia Szterker. Darcy Grimaldo Grigsby is Richard and Rhoda Goldman Distinguished Professor in the Arts and Humanities at the University of California, Berkeley. Denise Murrell is the Merryl H. and James S. Tisch Curator at Large, Office of the Director, at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Sterre Overmars is Weinrebe Curatorial Fellow of Post-1800 Paintings at the National Gallery, London. Isolde Pludermacher is Chief Curator of Paintings at the Musée dOrsay, Paris. Christopher Riopelle is the Neil Westreich Curator of Post 1800 Paintings at the National Gallery, London.
