On a beau dire..., from Ces Bons Parisiens
Original title: On a beau dire..., from Ces Bons Parisiens, published in "Le Charivari"
kurzbeschreibung
Two seated figures under a tree: this lithograph by Honoré Daumier is dated 4 September 1857 and belongs to the series 'Ces Bons Parisiens', which appeared in the journal 'Le Charivari'. The impression here is the second state, as recorded by Delteil.
Description
On the left a man sits with his legs crossed, wearing a shirt and checked trousers; beside him a figure in a long dress keeps both arms folded across the chest. Both stare at the tree trunk between them. Further trees and a stretch of water suggest the setting behind them. Printed in black on white, the sheet carries the line 'On a beau dire... il n'y a rien de tel que la campagne pour bien se divertir' along its lower margin.
Context
Daumier drew this sheet for the satirical journal 'Le Charivari' as part of 'Ces Bons Parisiens', published on 4 September 1857. In the series he mocked the Paris bourgeoisie and the way it spent its leisure. The irony turns on city dwellers who have no idea what to do with the countryside.
Impact
The stiff postures and the baffled gaze fixed on the tree come across as comic and melancholy at once. An ironic tension builds between the pleasant landscape and the plain idleness of the two visitors. Spare linework keeps their body language at the fore.
Technique
The image was printed as a lithograph in black on paper and survives in its second state, as Delteil records. The sheet measures 25.4 × 34.1 cm, the image area 20.9 × 26 cm.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)