What Degas Saw
by Samantha Friedman, illustrations by Cristina Pieropan

What Degas Saw looks at the world through a beloved artist's eyes and provides insight into his creative process. Walking through the streets of Paris with cape and cane, the French artist Edgar Degas observes the world around him, finding inspiration at every turn. From the blurry faces of passersby glimpsed through a bus window to the sun-dappled landscape seen from a moving train, from the hunched profiles of laundresses at work to light-bathed ballerinas on the opera-house stage, the artist—with open eyes and a curious mind—collects impressions of the people and places he sees.

"Pieropan's expansive prints, which illustrate the story, often adopt the shallow, stagelike settings and the unusual perspectives of Degas's art (…)
VERDICT Libraries—both close to and far from museums—in need of introductions to art and artists will want to consider this beautifully illustrated volume."
School Library Journal

"A work of art."
Shelf Awareness

“Pieropan’s delicate, scratchy linework has the formality of etching, appropriate to the intricate and old-fashioned scenes (…) this is an interesting view into the relationship between an artist and his daily life, and it will be useful as a preparation for a museum trip.”
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

“L'albo illustrato di Samantha Friedman e Cristina Pieropan, in poche pagine, entra nel cuore della visione artistica di Degas.”
La Stampa

“Un albo illustrato elegante, di impronta classica, che si presta a una lettura lenta, attenta, da assaporare principalmente con gli occhi, chiamati a immergersi nelle tavole accurate e ricche di minuziosi dettagli dell’artista trevigiana.”
MilkBook

“Un album à découvrir pour tous les amoureux de l'art & de Paris.”
Doolittle

Listen to the podcast of an interview with the author on Rai Radio 3 (in Italian).

Rights sold:

World: MoMA

For foreign rights inquiries, please contact MoMA Publications.

Other Books by Cristina Pieropan: