Artwork
Dis donc, ravignard, si nos femmes nous voyaient! ...
Dis donc, ravignard, si nos femmes nous voyaient! ... is an ink print by the Romanticist artist Honoré Daumier. It dates from 1846 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art. Honoré Daumée’s lithograph titled “Dis donc, ravignard, si nos femmes nous voyaient!
About this work
Overview
Honoré Daumée’s lithograph titled “Dis donc, ravignard, si nos femmes nous voyaient!” presents a brief scene of two men caught in a private exchange. The composition isolates the pair, allowing the viewer to observe their animated posture and contrasting dress, which together suggest a moment of confidential banter within a public setting.
Subject & Meaning
The work focuses on male interaction, emphasizing the gestures and body language that convey intimacy and secrecy. By juxtaposing the figures’ differing attire, Daumée hints at social hierarchies and gender expectations of mid‑nineteenth‑century France, using humor to underscore the disparity between public appearance and private conversation.
Technique & Style
Executed in lithography, the print relies on the fluidity of the stone‑based process to render expressive lines and tonal variation. Daumée’s characteristic exaggeration of facial features and gestural dynamism aligns the piece with his broader satirical oeuvre, while the crisp contrast of black ink against the paper enhances the immediacy of the scene.
History & Provenance
Created during Daumée’s most prolific period of social commentary, the lithograph circulated among the Parisian press and was likely distributed as a caricature. Its survival in several museum collections reflects the artist’s reputation for documenting everyday French life, and the print has been referenced in studies of 19th‑century print culture.
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.
