“Eleven degrees centigrade! Look at how it makes you look! And this is called the year of grace!,” plate 1 from Vulgarités

Art Historical Context

In the bustling satirical world of 19th-century Paris, Honoré Daumier captures the absurdities of bourgeois life with sharp wit in *“Eleven degrees centade! Look at how it makes you look! And is called the year of!,”* plate 1 from his *Vulgarités* series (1841). Daumier, a master lithographer and fierce social critic during France's July Monarchy,ered the pretensions of the emerging middle class. Here, the exclamatory title mocks the chill of an 11°C day—frigid by Parisian standards—and the unflattering bulk of winter garb, dripping with irony as it dubs the era a "year of grace." Printed in black ink on white wove paper, this lithograph exemplifies Daumier's revolutionary technique: drawing directly on limestone with greasy crayon to produce rich, expressive lines that could be replicated en masse for newspapers like *La Caricature*. At 22.1 × 18.8 cm, its intimate scale belies its cultural punch, poking fun at vanity amid everyday discomforts. Produced amid political censorship, such prints voiced public frustrations, cementing Daumier's legacy as the era's unflinching chronicler of human folly. Housed in the Art Institute of Chicago's Prints and Drawings department, this work invites us to chuckle at timeless gripes—fashion fails and weather woes—while reflecting on how satire shapes our view of history.

About the Artist

Honoré-Victorin Daumier · 1808–1879

Honoré-Victorin Daumier (1808-1879) was a prolific French printmaker, caricaturist, painter, and sculptor whose works offered incisive commentary on the social and political life of 19th-century France. Known as the 'Michelangelo of Caricature,' Daumier produced over 4,000 lithographs, 500 paintings, 1,000 drawings, and 100 sculptures during his lifetime. His biting political satire led to his imp...