Write a review on “The Glass of Absinthe” made by the artist Edgar Degas in 1876. The medium used by Degas was oil on a canvas with dimensions of approximately 36 x 27 inches. Degas was an influential artist in the impressionist movement, and a major figure in the Parisian art world. His work often steered away from landscapes and focused on capturing modern life and human behaviors. He places emphasis on light, everyday scenes, and psychological meaning in his artwork. The painting depicts a man and woman sitting at a table. The woman with a blank stare conveys a rather chilling sense of melancholy and derealization, while the drink in front of her, absinthe, a liquor, also potentially hints to societal issues like addiction or isolation. Degas’ “The Glass of Absinthe” uses compositional isolation, muted colors, and the prominence on the absinthe as an element to reflect on the growing concerns of addiction and its psychological toll in Parisian society, emphasizing how substance dependences is the catalyst to social and emotional alienation in urban life.”
