The streets of Paris are beginning to look like this every night, plate 7 from La Cométe De 1857 1857

Honoré Daumier created this lithograph, titled 'The streets of Paris are beginning to look like this every night,' a plate from ‘La Comète De 1857’. In the mid-19th century, Paris was undergoing rapid urbanization, and society was grappling with political unrest and class divisions. Daumier masterfully captures this tension, using satire to reflect the anxieties of his time. Here, we see caricatured figures peering out from their windows, their faces a mix of awe and apprehension, collectively gazing at the sky. Daumier makes us consider who has the privilege to contemplate the cosmos, and who is instead confined to the anxieties of daily survival. The artist invites us to consider our own place in the spectacle. Are we among those who can afford to look up, or are we stuck on the ground, looking for some kind of hope? Daumier’s commentary resonates even now, reminding us that our perspectives are always shaped by our material conditions.