Dire que je vais être... exposé... 1859

Editor: This is "Dire que je vais être... exposé..." by Honoré Daumier, a lithograph from 1859. It's a rather biting commentary, wouldn't you say? The figures seem so severe, almost grotesque in their formality. What do you see in this piece? Curator: The caricature style undeniably emphasizes the starkness you observed. However, I am also drawn to the formal arrangement of lines and shapes. Observe how the cross-hatching creates a sense of depth, juxtaposed with the flattened planes of the background. It serves to almost exaggerate and abstract the scene beyond simple satire. The family's postures – the husband’s rigid stance, the wife’s disdainful gaze – all point to an underlying tension created by both the formal composition and the situational irony. What does the lack of curvature or softness communicate? Editor: I see what you mean; there's a definite lack of tenderness, not just in their expressions, but in how Daumier renders them. It’s almost as if he's using the lines themselves to convey their rigid social standing and attitudes. So you are pointing to a level beyond satire into commentary on values? Curator: Precisely. By examining the structural choices Daumier makes – the sharp contrasts, the unflattering angles, the suppression of emotional softness – we can begin to decode his underlying critique. Notice how the family relates to the sculptures in the background as indicators of an intellectual society. The use of stark linearity emphasizes their internal values. Is Daumier perhaps critiquing their societal values through a lack of curves and empathy in his artistic rendering? Editor: I never thought to analyze the lines themselves as carriers of meaning! Seeing the work in this perspective of underlying critiques of structures is invaluable. Curator: Indeed, close formal examination allows the artwork to speak in ways unachievable via just textual interpretation of society.