As part of its Arts on Screen series, the Eden Cinemas presents Degas: Passion for Perfection which will be showing on Friday 16th November at 8.50pm and Sunday 18th November at 6.50pm.
The film journeys from a superb exhibition at The Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge (where the UK’s most extensive Degas collection is held) to Paris and Italy, where Degas spent his formative years and taught himself to paint.
Degas: Passion for Perfection offers a unique insight into Degas’ personal and creative life, looking at his relationship with the impressionist movement, fascination with dance, and struggle with his eyesight, which in time would prevent him making art altogether.
The film uncovers the fascinating story of his obsessive pursuit for perfection both through experimentation with new techniques and the study of past masters. Throughout the film Degas’ search for excellence is made clear through multiple iterations of compositions and obsessive reworking of artworks, sometimes even asking for paintings back from buyers to continue working on them.
Never fully satisfied, many of Degas’ drawings and sculptures were kept in private during his lifetime but, now through close examination, they can be seen as some of the most beautifully detailed and expressive works in the modern era. Using written accounts by friends and commentators, and the narration of letters written by Degas himself, this film reveals a more complex truth behind one of the most influential French artists of the late 19th-century and serves as an exploration of the complex workings of Degas’ artistic mind.
Tickets for the first screening include a complimentary glass of wine and are available at €12 from www.edencinemas.com.mt or the Eden Cinemas box office.
