The Boy from Savoy and His Monkey 1823

Alexandre-Gabriel Decamps created this lithograph titled 'The Boy from Savoy and His Monkey,' and it presents a scene dominated by stark contrasts and subtle tonal gradations. The medium of lithography lends itself to a rich textural interplay between light and shadow. The composition is structured by the figures of the boy and the monkey, arranged in a close, almost claustrophobic space. Decamp's use of line and shading models a semiotic system where poverty and marginalization are brought into focus. The image can be seen as a critique of social structures. The textures and shadows of the urban environment surrounding the figures are encoded to represent the indifference and harshness of 19th-century urban life. Decamps uses the lithographic process to create a social commentary. The textures within the work are more than mere details; they are symbolic elements that invite re-interpretation through a modern lens.