Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec
French, 1864­1901
At the Circus: Work in the Ring
1899
Charcoal, pastel, and black chalk, with stumping, 
touches of colored pencil, and incising, on off-white wove paper
21.7 x 31.6 cm	
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. B. E. Bensinger, 1972.1167

The Circus Fernando was the first permanent circus in Paris. Toulouse-Lautrec was a frequent visitor and knew all the performers. He always took his sketchbooks and binoculars with him. 

The artist’s drawing of work in the ring is like a snapshot. It captures and freezes a moment in time, and it is cropped, or cut off, like a photo. Absorbed in her practice, the woman’s back is to us; she is not posing like a model. How do we know this is a practice and not a performance?