La Balançoire politique...
1866
Medium
lithograph on newsprint
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund
Accession Number
1979.49.244
Art Historical Context
**La Balançoire politique...The Political Seesaw)** Honoré Daumier, 1866 Lithograph on newsprintNational Gallery of Art,ilsa Mellon Bruce Fund Step into the sharp-witted world of Honoré Daumier, a master of 19th-century French caricature with *La Balançoire politique*. Created in 1866 amid the political tensions of Napoleon III's Second Empire, lithograph captures Daumier's signature satirical bite. The title evokes a playground seesaw as a metaphor for the precarious balance of power, likely skewering the era's shifting alliances and electoral maneuvers between conservatives and libera...
About the Artist
Honoré Daumier · 1810–1879
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...