We are approaching mid-November when the weather starts getting nasty, from 'The countryside gentlemen,' published in Le Charivari, November 28, 1864
Original title: We are approaching mid-November when the weather starts getting nasty, from 'The countryside gentlemen,' published in Le Charivari, November 28, 1864
kurzbeschreibung
Honoré Daumier made this lithograph in 1864 for 'Die Landedelleute' (The Country Squires), a series published in the satirical journal Le Charivari. The sheet of 28 November presents two figures at a window watching the rain set in. It was printed on newsprint and is the third state of three (Delteil).
Description
A man stands at the window looking out, while a woman seated on a chair also gazes outdoors. He wears a suit and cravat, she a long-sleeved dress with her hair pinned up. Beyond the glass, showers fall. The figures occupy the foreground and the window behind them, lit from outside, gives the layout a balanced, almost symmetrical feel. Exaggerated expressions and the comic awkwardness of the situation carry the caricatural manner.
Context
Daumier drew the lithograph for Le Charivari, where it appeared on 28 November 1864. The series 'Die Landedelleute' dealt with the life of the rural gentry in the nineteenth century. Daumier was known for his political and social caricatures, which ran regularly in Paris papers.
Impact
The grey rain and the pensive gazes of the two figures give the print a melancholy mood. At the same time, the caricatural style keeps a humorous distance and ironizes the everyday scene.
Technique
For this sheet Daumier used lithography, a planographic process in which a design is drawn on stone with greasy chalk. Printing was done on newsprint, as was usual for magazine publication. The lines are delicate and rich in detail, showing Daumier's precision as a draughtsman.
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Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)