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Source Description
This sheet is one of many studies that Degas made in 1879 of his friend and supporter, the Italian art critic and patron Diego Martelli (1839-1896). Martelli was one of the most important champions of progressive modern art in Italy, and his writings on the 1879 Impressionist show became famous, playing a crucial role in publicizing the movement. This sheet relates to two painted portraits of the critic, one in the National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh, and the other in the National Museum of Fine Arts, Buenos Aires.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
130528
label
Diego Martelli
core
obj
dtoType
drawing
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
130528
contentType
drawing
title
Diego Martelli
description
This sheet is one of many studies that Degas made in 1879 of his friend and supporter, the Italian art critic and patron Diego Martelli (1839-1896). Martelli was one of the most important champions of progressive modern art in Italy, and his writings on the 1879 Impressionist show became famous, playing a crucial role in publicizing the movement. This sheet relates to two painted portraits of the critic, one in the National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh, and the other in the National Museum of Fine Arts, Buenos Aires.
date
1879
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q79912372
creators
1759
genreSpecific
Drawing
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Sheet: 44 x 31.3 cm (17 5/16 x 12 5/16 in.)
cul
France, 19th century
accession
1953.268
Source extras
tec
charcoal and white chalk
tombstone
Diego Martelli, 1879. Edgar Degas (French, 1834–1917). Charcoal and white chalk; sheet: 44 x 31.3 cm (17 5/16 x 12 5/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund, 1953.268
supportMaterials
description
brown wove paper
collection
DR - French
inscriptions
inscription
stamped in red, at lower left: Degas estate stamp (Lugt 658)
didYouKnow
The ghostly white tone of Diego Martelli's face was likely pink or peach when Degas made the work, and has gradually faded over time.
citations
citation
<em>Catalogue des tableaux, pastels, et dessins par Edgar Degas et provenant de son atelier...3e vente...</em> Paris: Georges Petit, 1919.
page_number
Mentioned and reproduced: no. 160
citation
"Accessions of American and Canadian Museums, April - June 1953." <em>Art Quarterly</em> 16, no. 4 (Winter 1953): 346-365.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 353
citation
Francis, Henry S. "Drawings by Degas." <em>Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art</em> 44, no. 10 (December 1957): 212-217.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 216; Reproduced: cover
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook.</em> Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958.
page_number
Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 602
citation
Boggs, Jean Sutherland. <em>Portraits by Degas</em>. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1962.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 123
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 172
citation
Boggs, Jean Sutherland. <em>Drawings by Degas</em>. Exh. Cat. St. Louis: City Art Museum of Saint Louis, 1966.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 142, no. 89; Reproduced: p. 141
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 172
citation
<em>Degas' Drawings</em>. New York: Dover, 1973.
page_number
Mentioned: p. viii, no. 76; Reproduced: pl. 76
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 213
citation
Pickvance, Ronald. <em>Degas 1879</em>. Exh. Cat. Edinburgh: National Gallery of Scotland, 1979.
page_number
Mentioned and reproduced: p. 54, no. 56
citation
Johnson, Mark M. <em>Idea to Image: Preparatory Studies from the Renaissance to Impressionism</em>. Exh. Cat. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1980.
page_number
Mentioned: pp. 59-60; Reproduced: p. 60
citation
Adriani, Götz. <em>Edgar Degas: Pastelle, Olskizzen, Zeichnungen</em>. Exh. Cat. Tubingen: Kunsthalle, 1984.
page_number
Mentioned: pp. 372-3, no. 130
citation
Sutton, Denys. <em>Edgar Degas: Life and Work</em>. New York: Rizzoli, 1986.
page_number
Mentioned: pp. 10, 290; Reproduced: p. 286, pl. 276
citation
Boggs, Jean Sutherland, et al. <em>Degas</em>. Exh. Cat. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1988.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 312
citation
Weingrod, Carmi. "The Essence of Charcoal." <em>American Artist</em> 57, no. 616 (November 1993): 10-16.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 12
citation
Stratis, Harriet K. "Unintended Outcomes: Recognizing Change in 19th-Century French Drawings." In <em>Nineteenth-Century French Drawings: The Cleveland Museum of Art, </em>11-23. Lewes, UK, Cleveland, Ohio: GILES; Cleveland Museum of Art, 2023.
page_number
Mentioned and reproduced: p. 60-61, fig. 40
creditline
John L. Severance Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 06:44:59.364000
sourceId
130528
dept
Drawings
coll
DR - French
med
charcoal and white chalk
creatorTags
male
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
d18d1ad7be24fa13