Man in a Nightshirt Reaching for a Bottle Labeled "Fountain of Youth"
1803–47
Medium
Pen and brown ink on wove paper, laid down on brown wove paper
Dimensions
sheet: 11 7/8 x 9 3/16 in. (30.2 x 23.4 cm) mount: 14 1/2 x 10 11/16 in. (36.8 x 27.2 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of William S. Lieberman, 2005
Accession Number
2007.49.458
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the whimsical world of J J. Grandville (Jean-Ignace-Isidore Gérard, 180–1847), a French caricaturist of the Romantic era, this and brown ink drawing on wove paper captures human folly with sharp wit. Created during Grandville's prolific career, he satirized society through fantastical illustrations in journals like *La Caricature*, the work depicts a disheveled man in ashirt, half-rising from bed to grasp a bottle labeled "Fountain of Youth It's a classic Grandville touch—exaggerated gestures poking fun at vanity and the eternal quest for immortality. The smooth wove paper allowed Grandvil...