Artwork
Young Woman with Her Hand over Her Mouth
Young Woman with Her Hand over Her Mouth is an oil painting by the Impressionist artist Edgar Degas. It dates from 1875 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
Degas’s composition emphasizes the subject’s inwardness, focusing on her introspective expression rather than external action.
The painting depicts a seated woman whose right hand partially covers her mouth, a gesture that has been interpreted as signaling silence, modesty, or an intimate moment of reflection. Degas’s composition emphasizes the subject’s inwardness, focusing on her introspective expression rather than external action. The subdued palette and delicate modeling of light on the figure underscore a quiet psychological presence, aligning with the artist’s broader interest in capturing fleeting, unposed moments.
While the work does not include overt narrative elements, the gesture and composition suggest themes of privacy and the unspoken, resonating with the Impressionist emphasis on modern life’s unguarded, subjective experiences.
History & Provenance
The painting Young Woman with Her Hand over Her Mouth was executed by Edgar Degas in 1875 as an oil on canvas portrait. Its provenance indicates that after creation it passed through the hands of collectors Albert Henraux and Eugene Thaw before entering the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it is currently housed. The sources do not record any specific commission for the work, and its creation history is limited to the date, medium, and genre noted above.
Young Woman with Her Hand over Her Mouth (1875) is an oil on canvas portrait by Edgar Degas, classified as a painting in the portrait genre. The work measures 41.3 × 33.4 cm and entered the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art after being owned by Albert Henraux and Eugene Thaw. It is catalogued in the museum’s holdings as part of the Degas collection, though the specific accession number is not provided in the available records.
The painting has remained in the museum’s permanent collection and has been exhibited in the museum’s galleries, but detailed exhibition histories are not documented in the supplied sources.
Overview
Created by Edgar Degas in 1875, Young Woman with Her Hand over Her Mouth is an oil painting that captures a solitary female figure. This portrait exemplifies Degas's interest in depicting candid moments and individual introspection. The artwork is currently housed in the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, representing a significant example of the artist's mid-career output.
Technique & Style
Degas utilized oil paint to render this portrait, employing chiaroscuro to create a dramatic interplay of light and shadow. This technique gives the figure a profound sense of depth and dimensionality, particularly highlighting the woman's face and hand as they emerge from the muted background. The focused illumination emphasizes her pensive expression, drawing the viewer into the quiet intensity of the moment.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Born Hilaire-Germain-Edgar De Gas on 19 July 1834 in Paris, Edgar Degas came from an affluent banking family with aristocratic roots and spent his childhood among the cultivated circles of the French capital.
- Thora Bendix, née Anne Victoria Sundberg
Head of a Woman
Portrait of a young woman, study
Ida Ilsted, the Artist's Fiancée. Sketch
Study after the Model (Geesje Kwak?)
Portrait of the artist's wife, Leta Czajkowska (ca.1875–1947)
Ida Ilsted, the Artist's Fiancée
Portrait of Mrs. Z.
Portræt af malerinden Christine Swane, f. Larsen, som ung
Portrait of Miss Deuringer
'Meditation'