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Degas, like no other artist, understood and knew how to show in his paintings and pastels everything particular to the dancer's profession. His phenomenal powers of observation and his candour prevented him from ever overelaborating his figures. By conventional standards, the seated dancer, with her flat face, awkward figure, and short neck, is hard to describe as beautiful. Nevertheless her pose is unaffected and at ease. Though perhaps not elegant, she is completely natural, which for Degas was more important.
The pastel displays a unique combination of splashes of colour. The balance of compositional elements is sustained by crossing diagonals.