Head of a Saint (profile to the right), after Fra Angelico

Edgar Degas (1834-1917) stands as one of the most innovative artists of the nineteenth century, whose distinctive vision transformed how modern life could be depicted on canvas. Born Hilaire-Germain-Edgar De Gas in Paris to a wealthy banking family—his father French, his mother a Louisiana Creole from New Orleans—Degas received a classical education before abandoning law studies in 1855 to pursue art. Never marrying and maintaining a reclusive lifestyle, he devoted himself entirely to his craft, becoming both a brilliant conversationalist in artistic circles and a fiercely independent painter.