← Honoré Daumier

Turgot: –Eh, well, my poor Count, it appears that they borrow my name as they have taken yours for the sake of creating the sign of a shop, from 'News of the day,' published in Le Charivari, October 7, 1867

Original title: Turgot: –Eh, well, my poor Count, it appears that they borrow my name as they have taken yours for the sake of creating the sign of a shop, from 'News of the day,' published in Le Charivari, October 7, 1867

Artist

Honoré Daumier

Date

October 7, 1867

Medium

Lithograph on newsprint; second state of two (Delteil)

Dimensions

Image: 10 3/16 × 7 13/16 in. (25.8 × 19.8 cm) Sheet: 14 3/16 × 11 5/16 in. (36 × 28.8 cm)

Credit line

Gift of Harry G. Friedman, 1960

kurzbeschreibung

Honoré Daumier made this lithograph in 1867 for the series 'Tagesneuigkeiten' in the magazine Le Charivari, in which two figures are caught up in a satirical exchange. It was printed on newsprint and survives in the second of two states (Delteil).

Description

Two figures face each other: on the left, someone in formal dress holding a document marked 'LIBERTE'; on the right, a character in an oversized hat and long wig who hands over a paper. The plain backdrop sets the two opponents apart, a comic caption sits beneath the scene, and the caricature relies on exaggerated faces and garments rendered in monochrome greys.

Context

The lithograph appeared on 7 October 1867 in Le Charivari, the satirical paper for which Daumier drew regularly. Its 'Tagesneuigkeiten' series poked fun at current events and social fashions of the Second Empire. The joke turns on the habit of misusing the names of famous people as shop signs, as the accompanying text hints; Turgot and the count point to historical figures whose names were exploited commercially in this way.

Impact

The overwrought figures and the satirical caption produce an effect that is both funny and critical. The viewer smiles, yet the marketing of names and the vanity of those involved are also put on display. The clear layout draws the eye to the interplay between the figures and the accompanying text.

Technique

Daumier worked in lithography, drawing with greasy chalk on the stone. Printing was done on newsprint, as was usual for the mass run of Le Charivari. This sheet is the second of two states (Delteil), which suggests changes made after the first.

AI-generated description text

Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)