The actor and a street urchin, from 'Dramatic sketches,' published in Le Charivari, April 18, 1864
Original title: The actor and a street urchin, from 'Dramatic sketches,' published in Le Charivari, April 18, 1864
kurzbeschreibung
Honoré Daumier made this lithograph in April 1864 for his series 'Dramatische Skizzen', placing it among his works that take the theatre and its world as their subject. A stage is visible with an actor performing, while an audience sits in front. The print appeared on 18 April 1864 in Le Charivari.
Description
In the foreground, spectators sit and stand, their gazes scattered in different directions; their reactions range from applause to baffled astonishment. Behind them an actor performs on stage, a weapon in his hand, caught mid-way through a dramatic turn. The light stays dim and adds to the mood. Executed in black and white in a realistic manner, the print also carries caricatural traits, above all in the exaggerated faces.
Context
Daumier drew this sheet for the satirical magazine Le Charivari, for which he regularly supplied socially critical caricatures. In the series 'Dramatische Skizzen' he dealt with the theatre business and the people involved in it. The work falls in a period when he had already made a name for himself with his socially critical depictions.
Impact
Tension arises above all from the contrast between stage and audience, which gives the sheet its liveliness. The exaggerated faces and the actor's histrionic gesture create an ironic distance from the theatrical pathos that is both displayed and undercut here.
Technique
Carried out as a lithograph, the sheet exists in the second of two states (Deltiel). It was printed on paper, and the image area measures 24.3 × 22.4 cm. The process allows fine gradations of shading, which benefit the dim lighting.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)