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Lot Essay
The title Danse espagnole implies that it is the dance, rather than the dancer, that is Spanish; this was the title referred to by Hébrard, who owned the foundry that cast the bronzes, in the first major exhibition of Degas' sculptures. The ballerinas and models that Degas used and who featured on the stage in Paris were often of a number of nationalities and certainly, during the mid to late-1880s when Danse espagnole may have been conceived, there was a vogue for Spanish culture in France. Groups of Spanish musicians and dancers toured the country, just as the Russian dancers later would, again captivating Degas. This had an effect on the culture in France as well, where various aspects of Spanish dance and music were adapted for the Paris audiences.
Regardless of whether Danse espagnole records a specific Spaniard or a Hispanic flavoured dance, it is clear that, in formal terms, the playing of the castanets has provided Degas with a subject matter that fascinated him enough that he explored it in two separate sculptures - another variation exists in which the surface retains heavier traces of Degas' working, as opposed to the finer sheen of Danse espagnole, that in turn has a more lustrous finish which accentuates the elegant flow of this posture.
Regardless of whether Danse espagnole records a specific Spaniard or a Hispanic flavoured dance, it is clear that, in formal terms, the playing of the castanets has provided Degas with a subject matter that fascinated him enough that he explored it in two separate sculptures - another variation exists in which the surface retains heavier traces of Degas' working, as opposed to the finer sheen of Danse espagnole, that in turn has a more lustrous finish which accentuates the elegant flow of this posture.