Artwork
Allons donc, chers confrères...
Allons donc, chers confrères... is an ink print by the Romanticist artist Honoré Daumier. It dates from 1845 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1845, this lithograph by Honoré Daumier depicts three figures in black judicial robes and tall hats clustered together in a heated discussion. The composition is rendered in stark, bold lines that emphasize their exaggerated facial expressions—a shocked look, a frustrated stare, and a wild gesticulation—while the plain background isolates the scene.
Subject & Meaning
The work, titled *Allons donc, chers confrères...* and subtitled "Les Gens de Justice," satirizes members of the legal profession, presenting them as pompous yet inept. By inflating their gestures and expressions, Daumier critiques the self‑importance and perceived incompetence of judges or lawyers, aligning the image with his broader use of caricature to question authority.
Technique & Style
Executed as a lithograph, the image relies on strong, unmodulated lines characteristic of Daumier’s printmaking. The medium allowed him to produce sharp contrasts and rapid, expressive strokes, which heighten the comic distortion of the figures while maintaining a clear, readable silhouette suitable for reproduction in the popular journals of his day.
Context
The print belongs to Daumier’s long series of satirical illustrations for Parisian periodicals such as *La Caricature* and *Le Charivari*. Produced during a turbulent era that encompassed the July Revolution of 1830 and the eventual collapse of the Second French Empire, the work reflects the artist’s ongoing engagement with political and social commentary through humor and visual exaggeration.
Artist & collection
Artist
Honoré-Victorin Daumier was a French painter, sculptor, and printmaker, whose many works offer commentary on the social and political life in France, from the Revolution of 1830 to the fall of the Second French Empire in 1870.
