This portrait depicts a young girl softly illuminated by gentle light. Her lively energy is conveyed through swift, abstract pastel marks that seem to dance across the canvas. Edward drew inspiration from Edgar Degas, embracing his gestural mark-making and exploration of colour as a means of creating depth. He intended these expressive pastel marks to fill the composition with dynamic movement, offering a vivid contrast to the quiet stillness of her tilted head and the intrigue held in her expression.
