Le Bétophile
1840
Medium
lithograph on newsprint
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund
Accession Number
1979.49.168
Art Historical Context
**Le Bétophile** is a captivating lithograph by Honoré Daumier created in 1840 the height of France's July Monarchy.umier, a pioneering French caricaturist and Realist artist (1808–1879), was renowned his sharp social commentary through thousands of prints published in satirical journals like *Le Charivari*. This work exemplifies his knack for skewering bourgeois society, likely poking fun at an eccentric "bétophile"—a beetle enthusiast—amid the era's growing fascination with science and collecting among the middle class. The title evokes the peculiar obsessions of urban intellectuals, reflect...
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...