Jeunes gens de cinquante a soixante ans ... c. 19th century

Curator: Here we have "Jeunes gens de cinquante a soixante ans...", a lithograph by Honoré Daumier, dating from the 19th century. Editor: Good heavens, they’re positively giddy! Is it something in the water, or have they simply discovered the fountain of youth? It's almost unsettling how gleeful they seem, given their… visible years. Curator: The title gives us a clue, translating roughly to “Men of fifty to sixty years behaving like true brats after reading the new work of M. Flourens.” It’s satire, plain and simple, a dig at intellectual fads perhaps? Daumier was the master of social commentary, wielding his pen like a dagger. Editor: Dagger, yes, but also a comedian’s pratfall. Observe the exaggerated poses, the almost frantic energy radiating from these figures. Their canes become mere props in their absurd dance. It brings to mind the fleeting nature of intellectual trends, the ease with which mature individuals can succumb to fashionable nonsense. Note that the canes and hats serve here as signifiers of class and respectability in contrast with such youthful behavior. Curator: The Romantic movement had a strong influence on Daumier; it certainly reveals itself here. He uses realism not as an end, but as a springboard into the world of expressionism and caricature. Each line vibrates with intention; it’s raw emotion rendered visible on the page. The symbolism isn’t exactly hidden, it smacks you right in the face with good humor. Editor: True, but there’s a poignancy lurking beneath the surface. These men are perhaps chasing a feeling, an experience, trying to recapture something lost to time. Their frenetic energy is almost desperate. Look at their clothes and general appearence, all the features are exegerated to stress not youth but decay. Curator: I can see your point, although I think Daumier is targeting something less universal and more immediate: the ridiculousness of intellectual pretension in his day. However, your reading adds another layer, one that makes it a somewhat tragic commentary, now that you point that out. Editor: Ultimately, Daumier has immortalized them. These foolish men dance on, reminding us to take ourselves, and our intellectual pursuits, a little less seriously. Curator: I completely concur; it’s a print that both mocks and, surprisingly, maybe even moves you.