Four Jockeys by Degas

This highly modern equestrian painting produced in oil by the artist Degas Edgar is part of the impressionist movement through its innovative approach to contemporary sporting life. The work temporarily titled “Four Jockeys” abandons the action of the race to focus on the moments of waiting and nervous concentration. This modern thematic choice allows the painter to explore waiting postures and the contained tension of men and beasts.

Four jockeys mounted on their bay and chestnut horses are grouped in the foreground on a green meadow under a summer sky. The jockey on the right, seen from a three-quarter back view, wears a very luminous lavender blue and fuchsia pink jacket with a matching cap. Near him, a rider in an emerald green jacket and dark cap observes the ground, while a third jockey in a golden yellow jacket fades to the left. The soft natural light caresses the silky coats of the animals and makes the satin fabrics of the jackets shine. The tight and bold framing crops the figures, reinforcing the impression of immediate proximity.

The technical virtuosity of Edgar Degas is fully expressed in the anatomical precision of the drawing of the horses and the fluidity of his pictorial touch. The artist uses rapid brushstrokes and contrast of bright colors to suggest the quiver of life and the powerful movement of the mounts.