Apotheker Robert Macaire beveelt zijn klant een product aan 1838

This print, made by Honoré Daumier, likely dates to the 1830s. It was created using lithography, a printmaking process which involves drawing on a flat stone with a greasy crayon, then using oil and water to fix the design and allow for multiple impressions. Daumier was a master of this medium, and its capacity for capturing subtle tonal gradations is evident here. The velvety blacks and soft greys give depth to the scene. In this image, Daumier satirizes the figure of Robert Macaire, a symbol of bourgeois greed and unscrupulous business practices in 19th-century France. He embodies the excesses of a society obsessed with profit. The drawing appears effortless but the careful rendering, the attention to detail, shows that Daumier was highly skilled at describing social types. Lithography itself was a relatively new technology at the time, reflecting the rise of mass media and consumer culture. This print serves as a reminder that art is always enmeshed in the social and economic realities of its time.