Degas’s sister Thérèse married her cousin Edmondo Morbilli in Naples in 1863. About two years later, Degas painted this intriguing double portrait of the couple. Though they are united through touch and dress—her hand placed on his shoulder, his tie matching the hue of her ensemble—a palpable tension radiates from the painting. Edmondo physically dominates the composition, casting a shadow on his wife’s face. Thérèse’s disconcerting and piercing gaze imparts a sense of unease, and the divided background further separates the couple. Combining traditional elements of Italian Renaissance portraiture and visual elements of the modern daguerreotype photograph, the result is a penetrating likeness. Degas never sold his family portraits, and this one remained with descendants until 1927.