Well, if you look very closely, you might end up finding some quality! The color seems to be good., from 'Sketches from the Salon,' published in Le Charivari, June 16, 1865
Original title: Well, if you look very closely, you might end up finding some quality! The color seems to be good., from 'Sketches from the Salon,' published in Le Charivari, June 16, 1865
kurzbeschreibung
Honoré Daumier made this lithograph in June 1865 for the series “Sketches from the Salon,” published in the magazine Le Charivari. Two men stand in a room before a painting. The print, on newsprint, is the second of two states.
Description
Two figures anchor the foreground: on the right, a gentleman in a black top hat holding an object—perhaps a mirror—and on the left, a person in a cap and jacket. Both look in the same direction. Behind them, other visitors, a portrait, and a window can be made out. The black-and-white lithograph uses graduated shading to give the figures and the room a sense of volume. The arrangement feels like an incidental observation or a conversation.
Context
The series “Sketches from the Salon” appeared in 1865 in the Parisian satirical weekly Le Charivari, for which Daumier drew regularly. It took aim at the annual art exhibition at the Salon, where visitors often judged the works on display with a critical or mocking eye. Daumier used lithography to caricature social types and behavior.
Impact
The print captures a humorous everyday situation: the viewers of the painting become the viewed. The precise drawing and the pointed caption create an ironic distance from the art criticism of the day. The view feels lively and invites a smile.
Technique
For this lithograph, Daumier drew with greasy chalk on a limestone—a planographic process. It was printed on newsprint, as was customary for mass distribution in satirical papers. The nuanced shading and contrasts attest to his skill in this technique.
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Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)