Conformation and the Parade Ring · At the Rail
Two Studies of a Jockey
Edgar Degas, c. 1884 · black chalk, charcoal, and pastel on brown laid paper
What it is
A jockey crouched with the reins in his hands, drawn twice side by side in black chalk, charcoal and pastel on brown laid paper by Edgar Degas around 1884.
Why it matters
Degas drew the same rider again and again to fix the posture he used in his racecourse paintings.
What to notice
There is no horse at all: the reins stretch across the sheet to nothing, and the pastel touches only the silks.
The rider, before the race.
Provenance
- Maker
- Edgar Degas, c. 1884
- Era
- The Victorian Turf (1837–1901)
- Chapter
- The Yard Wakes
- Medium
- black chalk, charcoal, and pastel on brown laid paper
- Made
- 1884
- Source
- National Gallery of Art, Washington, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon · via Wikimedia Commons · 1999.79.14
Rights: CLEAR. Public domain — U.S. 95-year rule (published 1930 or earlier). Gated by the work’s own year of publication. Cleared by registry on 2026-11-01. Wikimedia Commons licence tag, read 2026-11-01: CC0. The maker died in 1917.
Format
The full-resolution, color-managed file — restored honestly, yours to print and keep.
Sized to protect print quality — this scan supports sizes up to 18x24" cleanly.
Size
$29.00
More from the Stable Wall
Elsewhere in the family
- The Links — the other morning religion.
- Painted Lineage — the bloodline, beside the family line.
- Painted Earth — home ground as a period map.