Edgar Degas

About Edgar Degas

Edgar Degas (1834 – 1917) was a pivotal French artist recognized primarily as a painter, though he also worked extensively in sculpture and printmaking. He is most strongly associated with the Impressionist movement, distinguished by his focus on modern life subjects, particularly ballet dancers, laundresses, and scenes of urban activity. His high ranking at #786 in historical importance by MIT's Pantheon project reflects his enduring influence on modern art, positioning him among the most culturally significant figures across time and languages.

In the digital age of 2025, Degas received approximately 325K annualized Wikipedia views. This level of attention aligns almost perfectly with his historical placement, yielding an Attention Gap ratio of approximately 1x, suggesting his contemporary online recognition accurately mirrors his documented historical influence. For contrast, Louis XVI (#95 importance) received only 71K views, suggesting a much larger gap where profound political importance is underrepresented online compared to Degas.

Looking at recent trends, Degas's online interest showed slight stagnation, with a -14.7% year-over-year change and a negligible -1% dip in momentum between Q1 and Q3 of 2025, indicating stable but not surging interest in the recent period.