Floor plan

Time and placeThe 19th century, room 2

The 19th century, room 2

A work made of graphite on cream laid paper (pieced).
Artist: Robert Bolling Brandegee, Sitter: Sarah Porter, Current owner: National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
AMERICAN PLAINS WITH MOUNTAIN RANGE IN THE DISTANCE
Orchids and Rocks, by Yi Ha-eung, 1897–98
Vehicles on the Streets of Tokyo, by Utagawa Yoshitora, 1870
Southwest Tower, Amiens Cathedral, by Cass Gilbert, 1880
ROOKWOOD POTTERY
The image depicts the upper half of a man's body, seated with his head tilted downwards. He has a pronounced brow and a long beard. His hair is sparse and closely cropped. He is wearing a textured cloak or robe, holding a hat in one hand and resting it on his knee. In the background, there is a large, bare tree trunk with bare branches.

The works in this room are listed below.

Works in this room

Works made in the 19th century, anywhere in the world.

Section 1, north wall

  1. A work made of graphite on cream laid paper (pieced).
    Bather With Outstretched Arms (recto); Study of a Tree (verso)Paul Cézanne, 1874/77Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. Artist: Robert Bolling Brandegee, Sitter: Sarah Porter, Current owner: National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
    Sarah PorterRobert Bolling Brandegee, 1896Courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
  3. AMERICAN PLAINS WITH MOUNTAIN RANGE IN THE DISTANCE
    American Plains with Mountain Range in the DistanceThomas Moran, before 1872Courtesy of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
  4. Orchids and Rocks, by Yi Ha-eung, 1897–98
    Orchids and RocksYi Ha-eung, 1897–98Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Section 1, south wall

  1. Vehicles on the Streets of Tokyo, by Utagawa Yoshitora, 1870
    Vehicles on the Streets of TokyoUtagawa Yoshitora, 1870Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Southwest Tower, Amiens Cathedral, by Cass Gilbert, 1880
    Southwest Tower, Amiens CathedralCass Gilbert, 1880Courtesy of the Smithsonian American Art Museum
  3. ROOKWOOD POTTERY
    Rookwood PotteryGeorge Gibson, 1886Courtesy of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
  4. The image depicts the upper half of a man's body, seated with his head tilted downwards. He has a pronounced brow and a long beard. His hair is sparse and closely cropped. He is wearing a textured cloak or robe, holding a hat in one hand and resting it on his knee. In the background, there is a large, bare tree trunk with bare branches.
    Beggar with Hat in Hand (Mendiant avec son chapeau a la main)Alphonse LegrosCourtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Section 2, south wall

  1. Illustration of a Balloon Ascending (Fūsen shōyō no zu), by Utagawa Yoshitora, November, 1872
    Illustration of a Balloon Ascending (Fūsen shōyō no zu)Utagawa Yoshitora, November, 1872Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. Painting composed of short, dense brushstrokes depicts two domed stacks of wheat that cast long shadows on a field. The angled light indicates either a rising or setting sun.
    Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer)Claude Monet, 1890–91Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. Study for "A Sunday on La Grande Jatte", by Georges Seurat, 1884
    Study for "A Sunday on La Grande Jatte"Georges Seurat, 1884Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  4. A work made of black chalk and charcoal with stumping, heightened with white chalk (recto), and black chalk and charcoal with stumping (verso), on dark tan laid paper.
    Standing Academic Male Nude (recto); Sketch of Upper Arm (verso)Eugène Delacroix, 1816Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Section 2, north wall

  1. Radicofane, by Miner Kilbourne Kellogg, 1841
    RadicofaneMiner Kilbourne Kellogg, 1841Courtesy of the Smithsonian American Art Museum
  2. OTTER CLIFFS
    Otter CliffsArnold William Brunner, 1879–80Courtesy of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
  3. In a dance studio, two ballerinas wearing knee-length tutus and ballet slippers sit on a bench and stretch to our right while four more pose at the back of the space, to our left, in this long, horizontal painting. The scene and dancers are loosely painted so many features are indistinct. All the women have light skin and dark brown hair. Each pale, robins’ egg-blue costume has a low-cut, tightly fitting, sleeveless bodice and a full skirt. Dabs of off white, teal, and blue suggest flowers lining the deep U of the neckline at the front and down the back of each bodice. Closest to us and nearly brushing the edges of the lower right corner of the canvas, one dancer sits on the end of a wooden bench and leans down between her legs, her feet widely planted. She rests her torso on an elbow folded onto one knee as she reaches for her left foot, farther from us, with her other hand. Her hair is pulled up and her face, looking downward, is deep in shadow. Sitting behind her on the bench, to our left, a second dancer lifts her right leg, toe pointing, as she pulls on her pale pink tights. Her other leg stretches straight, pointed toe brushing the floor, in front of her. This woman’s hair hangs loose around her shoulders. The pair is brightly lit from a source to our right, and an arched area of electric blue and mustard yellow behind them is difficult to interpret. The floor, which takes up about two-thirds of the composition, is painted with dabs of teal blue, pale fuchsia pink, and caramel brown. It leads us back to the upper left corner of the painting where four more four ballerinas stand in a line. The pair to our left stands with their backs to us, facing the wall with their right legs raised to shoulder height, toes pointed. The pair to our right faces us. They also stand with their right legs raised, creating a wide angle with their standing legs. All four ballerinas bend their arms gently at the elbow, and some tip their heads toward the raised legs. The rightmost dancer is illuminated by a pair of French doors at the back corner, at the top center of the painting. The wall behind the bench is streaked with mint green over honey brown, and the wall at the back of the room is leather brown. The visible, soft brushstrokes give the image a blurred, ethereal appearance in the dimmed studio. The artist signed the painting in the lower left corner, “Degas.”
    Before the BalletEdgar Degas, 1890/1892Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  4. A work made of watercolor and gouache, with pen and blue ink, over traces of graphite, on ivory wove paper, wrapped and adhered on verso to wood pulp board.
    InspirationGustave Moreau, c. 1893Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago