Degas doesn't hold back.

The Bellelli Family

Some people believe that you have to have a basic knowledge of art history to understand paintings, but this is rarely the case. Certainly it helps to know some background but most art is created so that everyone can react to it and not just the chosen few. In school we learned to break down the lines of poetry and discuss the symbolism etc. but even without doing that the sound of the poem alone could move us, just like hearing French or Italian spoken can be a pleasurable experience even if we can’t speak a word.

            Edgar Degas painted a picture of some family members in the years 1858-1860 in which the symbolism was not so subtle to those associated with it for them to allow it to be seen publicly. It was kept hidden until after the death of all those included in the portrait.

            The painting is set in an upper class French living room and it features Degas’ aunt, uncle by marriage, and their two daughters. It is a strange grouping as the aunt and her two girls stands aloof from her husband . He is painted almost with his back to us, separated from the rest of the family by a vertical line made up from the mirror, fireplace and table. Degas has purposely cut him off. It is because had no time for his lazy, disagreeable uncle in law. He felt that his aunt was trapped in a bad marriage with Baron Bellelli who had been exiled from Naples for his political activities. So, Degas exiled him in his own painting.           

            The children are painted to show their personalities. The younger one, whom he described as a mischievous tomboy, sits with one leg tucked under her, while her older sister adopts the ladylike pose which best describes her gentle nature.  Degas uses the younger child to glance in the direction of the father as the link so that the painting would not be seen as two separate halves. The aunt who is expecting her third child looks sad and worn out, probably due to her marital situation, together with the fact that her father has just died. She is dressed in mourning clothes and stands under the portrait of her dead father.

            A dog is a of loyalty but the dog in this painting is walking out of the picture on the uncle’s side. Only his head is back and hind quarters are visible, unlike the dog that stands between the couple in the Arnolfini Marriage.

 

The Arnolfini Marriage



Look at the painting by Degas and see if you can add anything to back up Degas' feeling of distain for his uncle or his comment on his marriage and feel free to include your comments below