Encore mes créanciers, toujours ... c. 19th century

This lithograph was made by Honoré Daumier, probably sometime in the mid-19th century. Lithography is a printmaking process that involves drawing with a greasy crayon onto a flat stone, treating it with acid, and then inking and printing. Daumier used lithography to make sharp social commentary. Here, we see the character Robert Macaire, a symbol of post-Revolutionary get-rich-quick schemes and shady business dealings. The frantic pose and scattered papers are cleverly conveyed by the medium of lithography, which is capable of capturing a sense of spontaneous gesture. The sharp lines and contrasts create a feeling of unease, perfectly suited to the image of a man drowning in debt. This print is one of a long series featuring Macaire. It shows us how a technique associated with mass production could be used to express dissent and critique the very economic system that made such rapid reproduction possible. It makes you wonder about the labor and politics of consumption.