Louise Halévy Reading to Degas

"Daylight is too easy. What I want is difficult--the atmosphere of lamps or moonlight," wrote Edgar Degas of making photographs. This self-portrait with Louise Halévy features a reading lamp prominently in the center of the composition. Halévy and Degas are rendered sketchily--a hand here, an ear there--yet the lamp is portrayed in detail. Degas did render the atmosphere of lamplight, but not the illumination from it. The shade remains dark, and Halévy casts a long shadow over the paper she is meant to be reading, indicating a source of light from behind her. However, the low light level creates an atmosphere of tranquil contemplation and sets the mood for this private scene.