Robert Macaire, dentist. “- Damnit Doctor, you pulled out two good teeth and left the two bad ones. - (Robert Macaire aside) Devil!!! … (loud) Of course.... And for a good reason: there will be enough time to pull out the bad ones. The good ones surely would have caused you pain in due time. A dental plate however will not hurt you and is very fashionable right now. Everybody is wearing it, plate 57 from Caricaturana 1838 - 1839

Editor: So this lithograph, "Robert Macaire, dentist" by Honoré Daumier, dates from the late 1830s. It's... unsettling. The dentist's robe is almost comically ornate, especially given the patient's obvious distress. What do you make of the expressions Daumier captured here? Curator: Distress, certainly, but also something performative, don’t you think? Daumier, bless his satirical heart, offers us a glimpse into the theatricality of the everyday swindle. It makes me think of the old travelling medicine shows, all bombast and showmanship hiding questionable practice. Notice how Macaire, our “dentist,” is clearly putting on an act – the caption tells us so, but Daumier paints it in the smirk on his face and the flamboyance of his gesture. Isn’t that robe divine though? Editor: Divine and deeply inappropriate! So is Daumier suggesting dentistry at this time was inherently...corrupt? Curator: Not inherently, perhaps, but ripe for exploitation. The 19th century was wrestling with emerging professions, with what constituted "expertise". Daumier, with his sharp wit, used caricature to poke fun at those exploiting that uncertainty. Are we so different today, I wonder? Consider our anxieties about artifical intelligence, blockchain and NFT for example. What new robes are being donned today in the face of progress and tech? Editor: That’s a fascinating parallel! I was so focused on the immediate discomfort portrayed, I hadn't considered the broader commentary on societal anxieties and shifting trust. Thanks for sharing this new perspective! Curator: My pleasure! It’s easy to get lost in the “ouch” factor, but Daumier always has something bigger in mind. Art historical dentists and patients aside. It seems we also wear new fashion "robes" of technology when we seek relief.