Public collection via the Cleveland Museum of Art
AT-00011064Four Studies of the Head of a Young Italian Woman
by Edgar Degas
About the Artwork
This sheet of head studies unites three fundamental characteristics of Degas's art: consummate draftsmanship, captured movement and expression, and an almost obsessive attention to the attitudes of the female figure. Drawn in 1856 during his first trip to Italy, the sheet represents the model in successive positions and expressions of suffering. The name inscribed at the upper right-Rita Cacciala-must be that of the model. Writing models' names and addresses on figure studies was a common practice among artists, providing them with a handy reference of models they might want to contact for future use.
Inscriptions
by artist, upper right, in graphite: Rita / Cacciala; by artist, upper right, in graphite: Sora; by artist, lower right, in graphite: Roma; verso, lower left, in graphite: C [underlined]
Provenance
1856-1917: Estate of Edgar Degas [1834-1917], Paris, by descent to his brother René de Gas by 1918-1921: René de Gas [1845-1921], Paris, by descent to his family 1921-1976: Nepveu-Degas collection, Paris 1976: (Hotel Drouot, Nepveu-Degas collection sale, Paris, May 6, 1976, no. 13, sold to John Couper?) Probably 1976-1977: John Couper, Paris, sold to Shepherd Gallery, New York 1977: (Shepherd Gallery, New York, sold to Muriel Butkin, Shaker Heights, OH) 1977-2008: Muriel Butkin [1916-2008], Shaker Heights, OH, by bequest to the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH 2008-: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Exhibition history
French Master Drawings from the Collection of Muriel Butkin. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 26-October 28, 2001); Dahesh Museum of Art (February 19-May 18, 2002).
Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.
Quick Overview
- Artist
- Edgar Degas (French, 1834–1917)
- Date
- 1856
- Medium
- graphite
- Dimensions
- Sheet: 46 x 30.5 cm (18 1/8 x 12 in.)
- Type
- Drawing
- Classification
- Drawing
- Department
- Drawings
- Credit line
- Bequest of Muriel Butkin
- Accession no.
- 2008.388
More by Edgar Degas in museum collections
Open-access museum record · AT-00011064
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