Painting reproduction on canvas of the artwork
Degas and Evariste de Valernes (Degas)

This double portrait, housed at the Musée d’Orsay, is an introspective and complex work. Edgar Degas depicts himself on the right, with a pensive gaze and his hand on his chin, seemingly judging his own work. Beside him, his friend, the painter Evariste de Valernes, is seated, older and wearing a top hat. The composition places the two men in a relationship of proximity but also of psychological distance. The background, left in a sketched state, focuses all attention on the faces and attitudes of the two artists. It is a silent dialogue on art, friendship, and the passage of time.