Gallery renames ‘Russian’ painting
Britain’s National Gallery retitled the 1890s painting by Edgar Degas after calls on social media
Britain’s National Gallery has changed the title of a drawing by French impressionist Edgar Degas. Since last week, the 1890s pastel and charcoal image is now called ‘Ukrainian Dancers’ rather than ‘Russian Dancers’.
The picture in question is part of a series and was produced during visits by dance troupes from the Russian Empire to Paris in the late 1890s. Such performances were a popular attraction, given the French interest in Eastern European traditions after the establishment of the Dual Alliance between France and the Russian empire in 1894.
The dancers “are almost certainly Ukrainian rather than Russian,” its description on the National Gallery’s website says, without further elaboration. The gallery acknowledged that the change of title was due to the current political situation and after a public pressure campaign on social media rather than due to any new facts discovered about Degas’ work.