“- It's just because he's your friend, and because he has been introduced to me by you that I will let him subscribe to the last 20 shares of my colossal newspaper the EUROPEAN.... it will be a gold mine, and one day, he will thank you properly for it,” plate 7 from Les Amis 1845

Editor: This lithograph from 1845 by Honoré Daumier, the seventh plate from “Les Amis,” depicts three men in an interior. It strikes me as very theatrical, like a scene from a play, but I’m not quite sure what the narrative is. What do you see in this work? Curator: I see a convergence of social anxieties reflected through Daumier's skillful use of caricature. Look at the puffed-up demeanor of the standing figure, the man writing appears servile and the third lurks in the shadows. The newspaper's name, "L'Européen," dripping with imperial ambition, is ripe for commentary. It is almost as though we are looking at visual codes representing varying degrees of social status at play in the new world of commerce, as expressed by a network of friendship. Don't you find the title “Les Amis,” particularly ironic, given what we're discussing? Editor: I do. So, are you suggesting that Daumier is using this image to critique social climbing or perhaps expose the underhandedness in the newspaper industry at that time? Curator: Precisely! He masterfully uses symbols to reveal underlying social dynamics. The act of subscribing becomes a transaction, and friendship, a currency. I see Daumier using these repeated forms of "agreement," i.e., writing a subscription to create a subtle jab at bourgeois society. What are your impressions about the gaze within this picture? Editor: Well, it's telling that none of the men look at each other! It reinforces that idea of transactional relationships instead of genuine connection. Curator: Exactly! Through nuanced depictions and symbolism, Daumier provides us insight into human behavior within complex power dynamics and leaves us reflecting on our own participation within them. Editor: I hadn't thought about the individual gazes—or lack thereof—until you pointed that out! This piece has a lot more going on beneath the surface than I initially realized.