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Hilaire Germain Edgar Degas

Three Studies of a Dancer in Fourth Position

1879/80
Charcoal and pastel with stumping, and touches of brush and black wash, on grayish-tan laid paper with blue fibers, laid down on gray wove paper
48 × 61.6 cm (18.9 × 24.3 in)

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In the collection of Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago · as of July 2026

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FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

Made in preparation for the sculpture Little Dancer Aged Fourteen , this remarkable drawing depicts the model Marie van Goethem from three different perspectives: left profile, right profile, and facing the viewer. Edgar Degas wanted to understand the figure in the round, in two dimensions, before he approached the sculpture in three dimensions.

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