Le portrait au daguéréotype c. 19th century

Honoré Daumier created this lithograph, titled “Le portrait au daguerréotype”, during a period of immense social and technological change in Paris. The daguerreotype, an early photographic process, was a novelty, promising to capture reality with unprecedented accuracy. Here, Daumier uses satire to reflect on how photography was perceived in the mid-19th century. The print depicts a photographer presenting a daguerreotype portrait to a client and his child. The client remarks on how the portrait makes him look as though he had spent three years under the sun, humorously exaggerating the effects of the long exposure times required by early photography. The client then notes that his wife will be happy with the result. Daumier's caricature touches on themes of identity, class, and representation. It suggests the anxiety around the new medium's ability to capture and alter one's image, humorously portraying photography as a tool that could distort as much as it revealed.