Ennui
November 20, 1829
Medium
Hand-colored lithograph
Dimensions
sheet: 10 1/8 x 14 9/16 in. (25.7 x 37 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1971
Accession Number
1971.564.28
Tags
Art Historical Context
Created in 1829 by British caricaturist Robert Seymour and published by Thomas McLean, *Ennui* is a hand-colored lithograph that captures the quiet discontent of early 19th-century domestic life. At just over 10 by 14 inches, the print was designed for wide circulation, allowing middle-class audiences to enjoy witty commentary from the comfort of their own homes. Lithography, still a relatively new medium at the time, enabled artists to produce fluid, expressive lines that translated beautifully when tinted by hand with delicate watercolors. The work belongs to the rich tradition of British s...
About the Artist
Robert Seymour|Thomas McLean (British|British) · 1798 |1788 –1836 |1875
British, Somerset 1798–1836 London|British, 1788–1875