Vue prise sur n'importe quel boulevard c. 19th century

Honoré Daumier’s "Vue prise sur n'importe quel boulevard" is a lithograph, a printmaking process that democratized image production in the 19th century. The greasy crayon drawn on the lithographic stone captures a slice of Parisian life, with a corpulent bourgeois figure dominating the scene. The lithographic process itself enabled Daumier to mass produce images, churning out social commentary for a growing urban readership. This particular print, with its bold lines and stark contrasts, reflects the immediacy and accessibility of the medium. It depicts the material comfort of the wealthy classes and the physical indolence born of having too much. The image is biting in its commentary. Daumier wasn’t simply making art; he was engaging in a form of social critique, using the tools of mass production to question the values of a society increasingly defined by wealth and leisure. This makes it clear how the means of production can be enlisted in the project of social critique.