"Enough, enough, it's too tight!!..." 1839

Curator: This lithograph by Honoré Daumier, fittingly titled "Enough, enough, it's too tight!!...", really hits a nerve, doesn't it? Editor: Absolutely! The stark, almost cruel lines etch a story of vanity and physical constraint. It's a bit painful, a bit funny, all at once. Curator: Daumier, born in 1808, was a master of social commentary. He used caricature to lampoon the bourgeoisie. What societal anxieties do you think this image captures? Editor: The quest for an ideal, perhaps? That endless squeezing into a mold, literally in this case, to fit an external expectation. Curator: It's a timeless struggle, isn't it? Even now, the idea of conforming to an unrealistic ideal... Editor: Exactly. And Daumier's rough, expressive style makes it so much more immediate. It bypasses the pretty and goes straight for the raw emotion. This piece definitely makes you reflect on your own constraints. Curator: It does indeed. A potent little gem from the Harvard Art Museums.