← Honoré Daumier

Fishing with a sweep-net can be dangerous, from 'News of the day,' published in Le Charivari, April 13, 1872

Original title: Fishing with a sweep-net can be dangerous, from 'News of the day,' published in Le Charivari, April 13, 1872

Artist

Honoré Daumier

Date

April 13, 1872

Medium

Lithograph on newsprint; second state of two (Delteil)

Dimensions

Image: 9 7/16 × 8 11/16 in. (24 × 22.1 cm) Sheet: 11 15/16 × 11 1/4 in. (30.3 × 28.6 cm)

Credit line

Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1948

kurzbeschreibung

Honoré Daumier made this lithograph in 1872 for the series Actualités in the newspaper Le Charivari. The satirical scene shows a figure hunched in a boat labelled MONARCHIE, holding a trawl net that hangs into the water. The print carries the subtitle C'est dangereux, la pêche à l'épervier — fishing with a trawl net is dangerous.

Description

A lone figure squats amidships in a boat, the word MONARCHIE clearly lettered on its hull. He looks exhausted, head bowed, while his hand grips a net that reaches into the water and appears full. Behind him, a slightly rippled water surface suggests the setting. The layout centres entirely on figure and boat, leaving the background bare. Grey tones dominate the sheet, and the light falls evenly without harsh shadows, matching the caricatural tone.

Context

Daumier published the print on 13 April 1872 in the satirical newspaper Le Charivari, where he regularly commented on political and social matters in images. It belongs to the series Actualités and was made in the early Third Republic, after the Franco-Prussian War and the Paris Commune. The inscription MONARCHIE alludes to contemporary debates about the form of government, since a monarchist restoration in France was still under discussion. Through the fishing metaphor, Daumier caricatured the monarchy's precarious position in this transitional period.

Impact

Simple in construction and sparing in its imagery, the print feels immediate and insistent. The exhausted posture of the figure in the boat MONARCHIE creates an oppressive, almost resigned mood. Because the everyday fishing scene meets the political label, the image gains a satirical edge that prompts reflection on the situation of the time.

Technique

Executed as a lithograph on newsprint, the work survives as the second of two states (Delteil). The lithographic process allowed fine, draughtsmanlike lines and an even distribution of tones, which here carry the grey areas of water and boat. Printing on newsprint emphasises the ephemeral, journalistic character of the sheet, which was intended for a daily newspaper.

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