After the Bath (Large Version)

1891–92

After the Bath (Large Version), 1891–92. Edgar Degas (French, 1834–1917). Transfer lithograph; image: 30.4 x 32.4 cm (11 15/16 x 12 3/4 in.); sheet: 40.3 x 46.8 cm (15 7/8 x 18 7/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Richard B. King for the fiftieth anniversary of The Print Club of Cleveland 1970.285 Edgar Degas made many works depicting a woman stepping out of a bath as a maid waits with a large towel or robe. He revised this image throughout several prints over the course of two years, using transfer paper to vary its cropping and scale. The process of copying the image resulted in a distinctly grainy texture in tonal areas, such as the woman’s back. Degas’s technique was experimental and highly unusual, pushing the boundaries of lithography at the time. When Edgar Degas made this print, transfer lithography was a relatively new technique for artistic use.