"Six degrees below freezing..." 1847

Curator: Daumier's "Six degrees below freezing..." presents us with a snapshot of bourgeois life, likely intended as social commentary. Editor: The limited tonal range and hurried lines certainly evoke a cold interior. I wonder, is the artist mirroring the chill of the weather with the coldness of domesticity? Curator: Quite possibly. The print appeared in "Les Bons Bourgeois", a series for Le Charivari, a satirical Parisian newspaper. Daumier often critiqued the values and behaviors of the middle class. Editor: The man's hunched posture, peering out, almost seems trapped by the heavy shading closing in the composition. Curator: The "bons bourgeois" were a recurring target for Daumier's sharp wit and social observations within the context of 19th-century France. Editor: It's interesting how Daumier uses line to express emotional discomfort.