Thrifty villagers, satisfied watching the presentation from the outside, from 'A celebration in the neighboring village,' published in Le Petit Journal pour Rire, June 24, 1865
June 24, 1865
Medium
Lithograph on newsprint; third state of three (Delteil)
Dimensions
Image: 6 1/8 × 9 9/16 in. (15.5 × 24.3 cm) Sheet: 8 1/8 × 11 5/8 in. (20.7 × 29.6 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1936
Accession Number
36.12.8
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
Honoré Daumier, the renowned 19th-century French caricaturist and lithographer, captures the wry humor of rural French life in this 1865 print from * Petit Journal pour Rire a popular satirical weekly. Titled *Thrifty villagers, watching the presentation from the outside*, it forms part of the series *A celebration in the neighboring village*. Daumier's keen eye for social observation shines through as he depicts a group of frugal villagers peering contentedly over a fence, enjoying a festive event without spending a sou—highlighting the clever thriftiness of the working class amid Second Empire prosperity. Rendered as a lithograph on newsprint in the third state of three (per Delteil cataloguing), the work exemplifies Daumier's mastery of the medium. Lithography's greasy crayon technique allowed for fluid, expressive lines and rapid production, enabling thousands of affordable impressions for mass circulation. At 6 1/8 × 9 9/16 inches, its compact size suited the illustrated press boom, where Daumier produced over 4,000 prints critiquing bourgeois excess and everyday follies. This piece reflects the cultural vibrancy of 1860s France, where humor magazines like *Le Petit Journal* poked fun at class divides and human quirks. Today, housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department (Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1936), it invites us to chuckle at timeless penny-pinching ingenuity.
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...