Horse Trotting, the Feet Not Touching the Ground
original wax 1870s, cast 1920/1924
Medium
copper alloy
Dimensions
overall with base: 22.2 x 12.5 x 27.8 cm (8 3/4 x 4 15/16 x 10 15/16 in.) height without base (of horse): 21.6 cm (8 1/2 in.)
Classification
Sculpture
Department
CSD
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon
Accession Number
1999.79.36
Art Historical Context
Step into the dynamic world of Edgar Degas *Horse Trotting, the Not Touching the Ground*, a captivating bronze sculpture originally modeled in wax during the 1870s and cast in copper alloy between 1920 and 1924. Standing at 21.6 cm tall without its base, this 22.2 x 12.5 x 27.8 cm work the National Gallery of Art collection—graciously gifted by Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon—captures horse in mid-trot, its hooves elegantly suspended, evoking pure motion. Degas, a French artist associated with Impressionism yet renowned for his realist precision, was obsessed with horse racing and the anatomy of mov...
About the Artist
Edgar Degas · 1834–1917
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 ...