Un rappel de chanteuse, from Croquis Dramatiques
Original title: Un rappel de chanteuse..., from Croquis Dramatiques, published in Le Charivari, January 9, 1857
kurzbeschreibung
Honoré Daumier's 1857 lithograph belongs to the Croquis Dramatiques series, published in Le Charivari. It catches a woman in a white dress on stage, arms thrown up in alarm, as a masked figure in a dark suit reaches for her from behind. The print is the third state of three (Delteil).
Description
A woman in a white dress sits on the stage, arms raised, her face caught between surprise and shock. Close behind her stands a masked figure in a dark suit, presumably an actor or comedian, one hand laid on her. Flowers and a dark trunk can be made out behind them. Monochrome and evenly lit, the sheet looks the way lithographs of those years generally did.
Context
Daumier drew this lithograph for Croquis Dramatiques, a series that ran in the satirical paper Le Charivari. Parisian theater life and the acting profession supplied its material, often with a humorous or critical edge. The sheet was published on January 9, 1857; the date of January 21, 1857 refers to the printing state. Daumier's reputation rests on his socially critical images of the French bourgeoisie and the stage world.
Impact
The touch comes so abruptly and the woman reacts so fearfully that the mood turns tense, almost uncanny. Comedy and drama interlock, giving the image the ironic coloring typical of Daumier. Clean lines and expressive faces draw attention to how the two figures play off each other emotionally.
Technique
Lithography, printed here in the third of three states, which shows how often the stone was reworked. The process allows fine lines and graded shading, used here for faces and fabrics. The sheet measures 26 × 36 cm, the image area 19.8 × 26.5 cm, a format common for magazine caricature of the period.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)