Tiens, voila mamzelle palmyre qui fait ... c. 19th century

Curator: This lithograph, “Tiens, voila mamzelle palmyre qui fait…” is by Honoré Daumier, dating to the 19th century. What strikes you initially about its presentation? Editor: Well, the tonal range impresses me; such texture from what I understand to be a relatively young method for creating images. It feels dark, sarcastic, maybe even a little mournful given the limited palette. What do you observe from its composition? Curator: Indeed, Daumier mastered capturing subtleties through line and form. I note the division of space. The primary figures stand stage left, framing our view towards a window that houses the woman mirrored, actively painting in the windowed scene. It provides a commentary on craft and representation. The artist implicates how artistic traditions transform. Editor: Interesting! Daumier clearly addresses the material reality of the artist herself – toiling away within the confined space of a decorated "loge", accessible by a service entrance with the phrase "PARIEZ AU CONCIERGE". This act highlights a subtle distinction between high art and craft and questions notions of artistic production and commodification as it affects real women and workers. Curator: Agreed, while the materiality of this working condition is definitely palpable, the semiotic value of the "potiche," as in, "the vase," connects her interior labor to their present consumer pursuit. This reflection offers up not just Realism in its overt subjects but its conceptual arrangement. I am most struck by its clever structural layout that produces its potent social observation. Editor: Absolutely. It certainly prompts an interesting reconsideration of class, artistic practice, and consumer society during the nineteenth century in Paris, questioning the labor inherent to decorating that space to “be decorated.” Curator: It also speaks to the clever synthesis Daumier offers. Through stark juxtaposition, a mirror effect takes hold. A powerful way of highlighting a moment of observing the consumerist cycle of art making and its material reality. Editor: I see what you mean. It's fascinating to see how the form gives insight into the cultural and historical implications Daumier portrays of gendered and class artistic labour.