Plate 33: Robert Macaire journalist, from 'Caricaturana,' published in Les Robert Macaires
Medium
Lithograph on wove paper; second state of two (Delteil)
Dimensions
Image: 7 1/2 × 10 5/16 in. (19.1 × 26.2 cm) Sheet: 10 9/16 × 14 1/2 in. (26.8 × 36.9 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Edwin De T. Bechtel, 1953
Accession Number
53.693.46
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
This lithograph, Plate 33 from the celebrated series *Les Robert Macaires*, captures Honoré Daumier’s sharp satirical eye in 1838 France. Created in collaboration with publisher Charles Philipon and printed by Aubert et Cie, the image portrays the roguish character Robert Macaire posing as a journalist. Daumier, a leading caricaturist of the July Monarchy, used the figure to lampoon the era’s opportunistic press and the blurred line between reporting and profiteering. The series draws from a popular theatrical character to critique the social and economic upheavals of Louis-Philippe’s reign. Through exaggerated gestures and expressive faces, Daumier exposes how journalism could serve personal gain rather than public truth. Lithography proved ideal for this purpose, enabling affordable, widely circulated prints that reached a broad middle-class audience. As a second-state impression on wove paper, the work exemplifies Daumier’s technical mastery and the democratic potential of printmaking. Today housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, it remains a vivid record of 19th-century media satire and the enduring power of caricature to hold society accountable.
About the Artist
Junca|Charles Philipon|Aubert et Cie|Aubert et Cie|Honoré Daumier (French|French) · 1831 |1813 –1839 |1873
|French (born Italy), Rome 1813–1873 Bourron-Marlotte