A Banquet for Horsemeat Eaters 1865

Editor: This is Honoré Daumier's "A Banquet for Horsemeat Eaters." It looks like a lithograph. It seems to convey a sardonic mood. The facial expressions are striking! What compositional elements stand out to you? Curator: Note how Daumier uses line and shadow to sculpt form. The figures are rendered with a remarkable economy of means. The hatching technique creates depth and texture, and notice how the composition is essentially a pyramidal structure, grounding the visual narrative. How does that formal choice speak to the work as a whole? Editor: I see what you mean! It brings the eye to the horse's head. It emphasizes the subject of the work. Curator: Precisely! The textures of the horse's head and the cook's attire each contribute to a study of contrasts, don't they? Editor: I hadn't noticed that before! Thank you. Curator: Of course.