Le Lutrin 1864 - 1865

Curator: Well, if it isn’t “Le Lutrin,” painted by Honoré Daumier somewhere between 1864 and 1865, smack-dab in the middle of his career. Editor: A-ha! I always stop here. The open mouths…the dim light…it's a chorus caught between reverence and outright caricature. A little unsettling, no? Curator: Unsettling, maybe a touch familiar? Daumier, a master of social commentary, often poked fun at institutions, legal and otherwise, but here he sets his sights on the Church, capturing this choir practice with a kind of…raw honesty. Editor: Honesty, yes! They're not ethereal beings; they’re human, strained, even. And the oil paint application...loose, gestural. It doesn't hide the effort, or perhaps even the boredom, beneath the surface of devotion. The lighting! So theatrical. Curator: Indeed, there’s a sense of performance to it all, isn't there? Consider the context—France in the mid-19th century, a time of growing secularism, changing social dynamics, and of course, Daumier was always interested in the real and what makes people tick within changing social systems. What are you reading there, pal? It feels to me like a sly commentary on the role of faith in a changing society. A bit radical? Maybe. Truthful? Probably! Editor: I think I agree with you, for once. It could be both celebratory and mocking at the same time. Daumier’s ability to walk that tightrope…it's a talent, you know? Plus, they really *do* look like they’re giving it their all. A genuine fervor with more than a tinge of something else bubbling underneath. You can tell! It's that delicious Daumier contradiction. Curator: Exactly! A painting of its time, reflecting society's ambivalence to established structures... Daumier really captured something crucial, that ongoing play between public appearance and private sentiment, isn’t it wonderful to witness. Editor: A dark song...the way he caught them. Yes. Powerful. Curator: Very much. Thanks for sharing these few moments. Editor: Of course. Pleasure’s mine.