Edgar Degas's Little Dancer, 1878-1881...

The National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C

This statuette is on display and she is absolutely beautiful! Degas didn't carve this sculpture, but used a process of modeling in wax over a metal armature. He was very experimental in his approach, using many different materials, including wood and rope, to create the shape, layer by layer, then covering the outer layer with clay and wax. What I found so mesmerizing was the detail in the work: the wig is made of human hair, the silk tutu with bodice and the linen slippers are both 'delicate' and 'strong' at the same time. She is sublime in every sense of the word.