The Jockeys

A quintet of jockeys sits atop their mounts, their jackets bright with color against a stretch of land rendered in soft browns and tans beneath a faint, pale sky. The riders are loosely grouped, some facing different directions, giving the sense of a brief gathering rather than a race already underway. This painting, titled The Jockeys, was made in 1882 using oil, and it is held at the Yale University Art Gallery. Edgar Degas (1834–1917), a French artist, was associated with Impressionism and also created The Ballet Class. One detail worth noticing is how the muted ground and sky let the riders' colorful jackets stand out, drawing the eye across the five figures as they wait together in the open field under that pale light.