Alphonse Hirsch

Art Historical Context

Created in February 1875, this intimate portrait by Edgar Degas captures Alphonse Hirsch through the delicate medium of drypoint and aquatint printed in blue on oatmeal laid. Degas, a leading figure of the Impressionist movement, was renowned for his innovative approach to capturing modern life. This small-scale work, measuring just over four inches in height, reflects his fascination with printmaking as a means of exploring line, tone, and subtle color during a pivotal moment in his career, shortly after the first Impressionist exhibition. The combination of drypoint’s velvety lines and aquatint’s soft tonal areas demonstrates Degas’s technical mastery and willingness to experiment beyond his better-known paintings and pastels. Printed on textured oatmeal paper, the blue ink lends the portrait a cool, atmospheric quality that enhances its quiet, personal character. Such prints highlight Degas’s interest in the expressive possibilities of graphic media. Housed in the Art Institute of Chicago’s Prints and Drawings collection, this piece offers visitors a glimpse into the artist’s private studio practice and his ongoing dialogue with both traditional techniques and contemporary subjects.

About the Artist

Hilaire Germain Edgar Degas · 1834–1917

Hilaire Germain Edgar Degas, born on July 19, 1834, in Paris to a prosperous banking family, was the eldest of five children. His mother, Célestine Musson, a Creole from New Orleans whose father Germain Musson had roots in Haiti, died when Degas was thirteen, leaving his father Augustin and unmarried uncles to guide him. Educated at the elite Lycée Louis-le-Grand, where he earned a baccalauréat in...