The Millinery Shop

"The Millinery Shop" is an oil on canvas painting by French Impressionism artist Edgar Degas, created between 1879 and 1886. As the largest work Degas made on the subject of milliners, it vividly depicts a young woman, possibly a hat-maker or customer, seated at a table examining a hat she holds, surrounded by colorful, fashionable hats on wooden stands. This genre painting captures everyday life with lively brushwork and a focus on contemporary fashion, emphasizing Degas’s mastery of capturing fleeting moments and detail within the bustling millinery shop. The painting is part of the collection at the Art Institute of Chicago.