You may suspect that this is a spectator! But you are wrong.... It's the manager of the theater!, from 'News of the day,' published in Le Charivari, July 29, 1868
Original title: You may suspect that this is a spectator! But you are wrong.... It's the manager of the theater!, from 'News of the day,' published in Le Charivari, July 29, 1868
kurzbeschreibung
Honoré Daumier's lithograph from 1868 carries the mocking title 'You might think this is a spectator! But you are wrong ... It is the theater director!' and stages a comic case of mistaken identity from the world of the theater. The print appeared on July 29, 1868, within the series 'News of the day' in the journal Le Charivari. It is a lithograph on newsprint, in the second of two states, measuring 24 × 21 cm. The caricature plays with the indistinguishability of audience and stage personnel.
Description
A laughing man in the foreground first draws the eye, looking upward and thus pointing the way to the action on stage. There two figures stand: a woman in a long dress holds her hand to her face, while a person in a dark suit looks at her. Rows of seats fill the space, suggesting the audience. The entire reproduction remains in black and white; the layout feels animated and directs attention to the interplay between auditorium and stage. Diffuse light heightens the theatrical mood, and the style is caricatural and cheerful.
Context
This lithograph was made in 1868 for the daily newspaper Le Charivari, where Daumier regularly published political and social satires. The series 'News of the day' took up current events and everyday observations. Daumier was regarded as a sharp observer of Parisian theater life and bourgeois society. The date of July 29, 1868, places the sheet in the late phase of his career.
Impact
At first the laughter of the man in the foreground stands out, contrasting with the serious to dramatic attitude of the stage figures. This tension creates comedy, which the title picks up with the ironic confusion of spectator and theater director. The viewer becomes a witness to an absurd situation, typical of Daumier's satirical eye. The direction of the laughing man's gaze upward reinforces the impression of a moment caught on the spot.
Technique
Lithography on newsprint was used here, a common process for Daumier's caricatures. The second state of the print represents the revised version of the stone. This technique allowed fine lines and shading suitable for reproduction in the press.
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Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)