My friend, why are you up in the middle of the night, are you ill?
Original title: My friend, why are you up in the middle of the night, are you ill?, from 'The spiritualists,' published in Le Charivari, November 7, 1865
kurzbeschreibung
Honoré Daumier made this lithograph in 1865 for the series "Les Spirités," and it appeared in the magazine Le Charivari on November 7 of that year. Printed on newsprint, it is the second state of two. Three figures inhabit a nighttime scene in a dark room.
Description
One figure sits bent forward, head propped on a hand, a posture that betrays unease or worry. Beside her stands someone in a long robe holding a candle, eyes fixed on the seated woman. A third person emerges from the gloom, looking toward a tabletop scattered with various objects. A curtain frames the picture space. The lithograph's grays deepen the somber mood.
Context
With the "Les Spirités" series, Daumier offered satirical contributions on Spiritualism, which had gathered many followers in 1860s France. Le Charivari, a satirical daily for which the artist worked regularly, published the print. The sheet belongs to Daumier's critical observation of contemporary fashions and social phenomena.
Impact
Caricatural exaggeration and nighttime menace shape the effect. The figures seem isolated and withdrawn, which brings out the absurdity of Spiritualist practices. The viewer may smile without losing sight of the subject's seriousness.
Technique
For this lithograph Daumier drew with chalk on the stone and then printed onto newsprint. That the sheet survives in the second state points to later reworking of the printing plate. Fine hatching and graduated contrasts show how surely the artist commanded the lithographic process.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)