The Art of Lingerie is back and this week I’m featuring Edgar Degas! Degas is an artist that’s easy to love and really has just been waiting to be paired with lingerie. The delicate, ethereal way he portrayed ballerinas on and off stage, as well as their costumes, makes his work a rich source of lingerie inspiration.
I chose to focus on his works that show ballerinas on stage because of the beauty of his rendering of the layers of tulle and rich coloring of the costumes. Let me know what you think!
Dancers Bending Down (The Ballerinas)
Angela Friedman – Playful Promises – HoneyCooler Handmade
Angela Friedman Sascha Overbust Corset ($890)
Playful Promises Peach Frilly Knickers (£10.00)
HoneyCooler Handmade Camisole ($220)
I chose to include this first painting, “Dancers Bending Down” because of the delicate yellow tutus of the dancers. Given Angela Friedman’s background as a costumer for the ballet, it only makes sense that her amazing yellow corset is the first piece of lingerie that fits perfectly with Degas’ work. The Playful Promises frilly knickers have a playful look that makes them appropriate for leaping about in your bedroom like it’s a stage in a ballet theatre. I included the HoneyCooler Handmade chemise because although it doesn’t have the shaping of a ballet costume, the vintage, pieced-together look reminded me of the layers of tulle in a ballet costume and the attention to detail.
Les danseuses roses, avant le ballet
Chantal Thomass – Lascivious – Love Me Sugar
Chantal Thomass Balconette ($238.34) and Culottes ($185.08)
Lascivious Raspberry Kitty Bra (£89)
Love Me Sugar La Madeleine Sleep Mask ($88.97)
I included this painting of these three dancers because of the irresistible raspberry color of their tutus. The orange and pink Chantal Thomass set is a little more saucy than demure, but given how short tutus were in comparison to respectable skirt lengths at the time, I think the combination is more apt than it might seem today. This amazing Lascivious bra (well, the whole set really) has been dying for a tutu comparison and now that I see it, I can’t help but want a tutu for my boobs. For a sweeter piece that’s sure to give you ballet dreams, the Love Me Sugar sleep mask is a perfect sleepwear touch.
L’étoile
Fifi Chachnil – Ohhh Lulu – Minuit Douze
Fifi Chachnil Noctabule set ( €68- €225)
Ohhh Lulu Pink Satin Bra and Panties Set ($89)
Minuit Douze Gracie Bloomers ($91)
The last piece I chose, L’etoile, is one of Degas’ most well known and reproduced paintings. The focus on the dancer, the star, at the exact moment when all adoring eyes are turned to her is a subject that is almost impossible to turn away from. I look at this painting and I think how easy it is to yearn to be that star, that girl in the middle of a giant stage taking all the attention for oneself, even if it is only briefly.
This Fifi Chachnil set is already styled to look like a ballet costume, I don’t know how I could resist it! The fluffy short petticoat is sure to draw all the attention. The soft pink of the Ohhh Lulu set is not as bold as the other two pieces, but delicately shines in its own way. The Minuit Douze bloomers are another attention-grabber, with the gorgeous combination of white and rose and the puffy trim that evokes a dancer’s tutu.
What do you think– don’t Degas and lingerie go together well?
