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Plate 33: Robert Macaire journalist, from 'Caricaturana,' published in Les Robert Macaires

Original title: Plate 33: Robert Macaire journalist, from 'Caricaturana,' published in Les Robert Macaires

Artist

Honoré Daumier

Date

1838

Medium

Lithograph on wove paper; second state of two (Delteil)

Dimensions

Image: 7 1/2 × 10 5/16 in. (19.1 × 26.2 cm) Sheet: 10 9/16 × 14 1/2 in. (26.8 × 36.9 cm)

Credit line

Gift of Edwin De T. Bechtel, 1953

kurzbeschreibung

Unlike the other sheets in the 'Caricaturana' series, this 1838 lithograph by Honoré Daumier casts the swindler Robert Macaire as a journalist. The satirical single sheet belongs to the series that exposes Macaire's fraudulent schemes. It is executed as a lithograph on wove paper and survives in the second of two states.

Description

Two men dominate the image: one stands holding a paper in his hand, gesturing with the other as he speaks. The other sits, wearing shirt and jacket, listening attentively and also moving a hand. A table with more papers and a cigar case separates the two from a wall with a window behind. Black and white, as usual for lithographs of the period, the figures appear in contemporary dress; below the image are lines of French dialogue.

Context

Since 1836, the series 'Caricaturana' had appeared in the satirical journal 'Le Charivari'. The figure of Robert Macaire comes from a popular melodrama and became synonymous with unscrupulous business sense and fraud. Daumier used him to criticize social ills and professional groups of his time. The 1838 sheet presents journalism as yet another stage for Macaire's machinations.

Impact

A clear layout and expressive gestures give the lithograph an immediacy and liveliness. Comedy and criticism mix, prompting the viewer to reflect on the professional world depicted. The reduced color and precise linework lend the sheet a timeless aesthetic quality.

Technique

The work was made as a lithograph on wove paper: drawn with greasy chalk on a stone and then printed. Daumier mastered this process and achieved a lively effect through exact linework and shading. The fact that the sheet exists in the second of two states points to later corrections or additions to the plate.

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