The front row spectators, from 'Theater sketches,' published in Le Charivari, April 9, 1864
Original title: The front row spectators, from 'Theater sketches,' published in Le Charivari, April 9, 1864
kurzbeschreibung
Honoré Daumier's lithograph of 1864 places us in a row of spectators down in the orchestra pit of a theater. It belongs to the series 'Theaterskizzen' (Theater Sketches) and appeared on April 9, 1864 in the satirical journal Le Charivari. The image was printed on newsprint; this is the third state of three (Delteil).
Description
The eye is drawn along a row of seats from left to right, where mostly men in suits have taken their places. Their expressions differ from one another and are comically exaggerated, which gives the print its caricatural edge. Several spectators hold hats in their hands; clothing and posture are recorded with care. Everything stays in a single tone, the light falls evenly, and no shadows are discernible.
Context
The lithograph was published in Le Charivari, a Paris daily known for satirical and political caricature. During the 1860s Daumier worked on the 'Theaterskizzen' series to capture the audience and the social types of the Second Empire. This picture of spectators points to the bourgeois theater culture of the period, in which seeing and being seen went hand in hand.
Impact
What holds the attention at once is the blend of seriousness and comedy, which creates a satirical distance and invites a smile. The clear draftsmanship gives the sheet an almost graphic precision. Through the realistic, slightly overstated portrayal of the spectators, the image is memorable and stays with you.
Technique
As a lithograph, the work was made by planographic printing, in which a fatty crayon is drawn on a stone. It was printed on newsprint, as was usual for mass distribution in Le Charivari. The present version is the third of three states (Delteil), which suggests the printing plate was reworked.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)