Father Molé bringing New Years gifts to little Thiers, plate 62 from Actualités 1850

Curator: This is Honoré Daumier's lithograph "Father Molé bringing New Years gifts to little Thiers, plate 62 from Actualités," created around 1850. The artwork resides here at the Art Institute of Chicago. Editor: Well, it certainly makes a strong impression. The exaggerated features jump out – almost grotesque, yet compelling. There’s a childlike vulnerability in the figure on the right, contrasting sharply with the… disturbing… jack-in-the-box. Curator: Precisely. Daumier masterfully employed caricature to critique the political climate of his time. Molé, a royalist politician, is presenting this unsettling gift – a representation of Adolphe Thiers, another prominent figure. Editor: So, the image itself functions as a symbol? Thiers springing out, perhaps representing his… unpredictable nature? And the wide, unsettling grin – is that how Daumier viewed his politics? Curator: Undoubtedly. Daumier used these visual exaggerations to expose the perceived corruption and self-serving nature of those in power during a period of significant social and political upheaval in France. It highlights Thiers' role within those dynamics. Editor: It feels incredibly loaded, then. That exaggerated nose on Molé, for example—might there be anti-Semitic undertones at play as well? Caricature often intersected with such prejudices during this era. Curator: It is vital to remember Daumier lived in a France rife with deeply entrenched biases. While reading those specific intentions from the image is speculative, we cannot discount the influence of that cultural climate on his work. The print was a scathing commentary aimed at an audience who would immediately recognize the targets. Editor: This piece resonates across the years with these universal themes: political opportunism and a sort of unsettling 'gift' of deception. Curator: Yes, seeing it today, Daumier's print underscores how art functions not only as a mirror of its time, but as an instrument to challenge, to subvert. Editor: And, beyond its immediate context, it reminds us that sometimes, the most disturbing images hold the greatest truths.