Un terrible cauchemar
1854
Medium
lithograph
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Corcoran Collection (Gift of Dr. Armand Hammer)
Accession Number
2015.143.1133
Art Historical Context
Step into the sharp-witted world of Honoré Daumier with *Un terrible cauchemar* (A Terrible Nightmare), a poignant lithograph from 1854 now housed in the National Gallery of Art's Corcoran Collection, generously gifted by Dr. Armand Hammer. Daumier, a master of 19th-century French caricature and Realism, produced this print amid the political turbulence of the Second French Empire under Napoleon III. His works often skewered the bourgeoisie, politicians, and social hypocrisies, using exaggerated forms to deliver biting social commentary. Lithography was Daumier's ideal medium, allowing him to...
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...