Man met vissenkop presenteert zijn dochter aan de hertog van Orléans 1828 - 1829

This lithograph by Jean Ignace Isidore Gérard Grandville presents two scenes, one above the other, rendered in meticulous detail with delicate lines. The monochromatic palette focuses our attention on the forms themselves—the exaggerated shapes of the animal-human figures invite a critical reading of social hierarchies. The upper scene displays the absurd combination of human bodies with animal heads; the fish-headed man presents his daughter, with a birdlike head, to an avian Duke. The lower scene repeats this motif, highlighting the artist’s interest in destabilizing fixed meanings through the depiction of grotesque forms. Grandville uses animalistic features to critique human society, suggesting that beneath the veneer of civilization lie base instincts and behaviors. The artist asks us to question the values and categories by which we judge others, reminding us that meaning is not inherent but constructed through social and cultural codes.