Artwork
M'sieu, c'est une lettre de trois sous ...
M'sieu, c'est une lettre de trois sous ... is an ink print by the Romanticist artist Honoré Daumier. It dates from 1848 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
Honoré Daumier’s 1848 lithograph M’sieu, c’est une lettre de trois sous presents a domestic scene in which a man lies in bed, his face tight with anxiety, while an older woman stands nearby. The composition is rendered in the crisp lines and tonal contrasts typical of Daumier’s print work, and the background includes modest interior details that ground the figures in a recognizable setting.
Subject & Meaning
The central figure appears to have just received unsettling news, suggested by his furrowed brow and clenched jaw. The woman beside him, rendered with a rigid posture, conveys a sense of concern or perhaps the weight of familial or financial strain, hinting at the social pressures of mid‑nineteenth‑century France.
Technique & Style
Executed as a lithograph, the image employs bold outlines and varied shading to model the figures and suggest depth. Daumier’s handling of line captures the tension in the man’s expression and the stiffness of the woman’s stance, while the background’s modest detailing adds narrative context without detracting from the focal interaction.
History & Provenance
Created in 1848, the work belongs to the period when Daumier was establishing his reputation for incisive social commentary through print media. It has been held in several public collections, including the National Gallery of Art in Washington, where it is displayed as part of their holdings of 19th‑century French lithography.
Context
The lithograph emerges from a time of political upheaval and economic uncertainty in France, themes that Daumier frequently explored. By depicting ordinary people confronting personal distress, the image reflects broader societal anxieties and the artist’s interest in the everyday struggles of the lower and middle classes.
Own this work as a print
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.
