A Light Squall (Un leger grain), plate 8 from The Parisian Boaters (Les canotiers Parisiens) 1843

Curator: Here we have Honoré Daumier's lithograph, "A Light Squall," from his series "The Parisian Boaters," created in 1843. The print on paper currently resides at The Art Institute of Chicago. Editor: It immediately strikes me as rather bleak. The driving rain, the choppy water – it’s a picture of discomfort. Despite what looks like upper-class attire, the figures seem utterly miserable. Curator: Indeed. Daumier, with his incisive social commentary, is offering a satirical glimpse into Parisian society. This image encapsulates the bourgeois attempt at leisure being ruined by an unexpected storm. The title, "A Light Squall," is dripping with irony given the evident downpour. Editor: The symbol of water here is fascinating, given its dual nature. It’s both the source of their pleasure – boating – and the cause of their suffering. This downpour serves as a disruptor, upsetting their social performance. Note how they are dressed compared to what is happening in reality. The tree is struggling to survive up top on the right as well. I wonder how deliberate the symbolic connection might be, because it reminds me of the romantic ruins aesthetic or how that aesthetic could later turn into symbols of total ruination. Curator: Precisely. The context is everything here. The rising bourgeoisie of the time sought leisure activities to emulate the aristocracy, but Daumier reveals the artificiality and fragility of their attempts. They cannot control nature or circumstance. We see the gendering play out. Notice the rowing is happening on one end, and on the other, what is suggested to be leisure but also peril due to social climbing with no regard to class-based work. This resonates within current climate anxieties that highlight our social disparities within access and care. Editor: And the posture! The man at the oars straining, his back hunched, the other figures huddled and miserable… They're caught between wanting to uphold their status through this leisurely pursuit, and dealing with nature's force – exposing them as perhaps more fragile than they'd like to admit. You bring up our times now and climate - these visual symbols do have a strong meaning over long periods of time, I think. Curator: Exactly. It is a reminder that our carefully constructed realities can be upended by forces beyond our control, and these forces impact people very differently based on pre-existing structures. It's amazing how Daumier manages to say all of this through what seems like a simple genre scene. Editor: The economy of line, the stark contrast of the lithograph medium, it all underscores the precariousness of their situation. There's power in these simple graphic elements; I think this reflects the instability, perhaps also anxiety, that has existed for a very long time.