PRINCETON, N.J.- The Princeton University Art Museum presents an early masterpiece in portraiture by Impressionist artist Edgar Degas (1834-1917) on loan for a limited time from the Musée d’Orsay in Paris. Thérèse de Gas, painted about 1863, represents the artist’s beloved sister at an important transitional moment in the artist’s career. Thérèse de Gas is on view now through Sunday, July 3, 2011, when it will return to Paris. Museum director James Steward notes: “Degas’ portrait of his older sister Thérèse is an early, psychologically poignant work that reveals the artist as a superb painter while still in his 20s.” Known as one of the founders of Impressionism, the academically trained Edgar Degas preferred to be known as a revolutionary realist whose portraits are remarkable for their psychological penetration. The portrait date