Le Claqueur 1842

"Le Claqueur" is a lithograph by Honoré Daumier, a renowned French artist known for his satirical social commentary, created in 1842. The print depicts a man, likely a Parisian street performer or "claqueur," in a caricatured posture, smoking a pipe while standing outside a darkened storefront. Daumier's work often critiqued the social injustices and hypocrisies of his time, and this lithograph likely mocks the pretentiousness of the claqueur, a common figure in 19th-century Parisian society. The use of lithography allowed Daumier to disseminate his social commentary widely, reaching a broader audience and contributing to the burgeoning popular culture of the time.