Artwork
Gustave Sautayra
Gustave Sautayra is an ink print by the Romanticist artist Honoré Daumier. It dates from 1849 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
Created in 1849, this lithographic print by Honoré Daumier depicts a prominently featured, large‑headed gentleman adjusting his jacket, set against a vague assembly of smaller, indistinct figures. The work exemplifies Daumier’s characteristic focus on contemporary individuals, rendered with a loose, sketch‑like line that emphasizes facial features while the background recedes into abstraction.
Subject & Meaning
The central figure, a round‑faced man with a thick moustache and unruly hair, is presented in a manner that suggests both individuality and caricature. The surrounding crowd, rendered as blurred silhouettes, implies public scrutiny or societal observation, aligning with Daumier’s broader interest in critiquing the social and political actors of his time.
Technique & Style
Executed in lithography, the image relies on rapid, gestural drawing, with lines that appear almost doodled yet retain a clear definition of the protagonist’s expression. This approach allows the print to convey immediacy and spontaneity, hallmarks of Daumier’s satirical visual language, while the contrast between the crisp foreground and the softened background enhances the focal emphasis.
History & Provenance
The print emerges from Daumier’s prolific period of producing caricatures for the satirical journals La Caricature and Le Charivari. Created amid the political turbulence following the 1830 Revolution and before the collapse of the Second French Empire, the work reflects his republican sympathies and ongoing commentary on the era’s power structures.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Artist
Honoré-Victorin Daumier (French: ; 26 February 1808 – 10 or 11 February 1879) was a French painter, sculptor, and printmaker, whose many works offer commentary on the social and political life in France, from the…
Prince Lucien Murat
F.J. Ducoux
L.F. Raymond Wolowski
Pierre-Napoléon Bonaparte
Adolphe Thiers
A.P.F. Deslongrais
Michel Goudchaux
H Beard Print Collection
H Beard Print Collection
Vanity Fair: Statesman, No. 126 "An Arbitrator"
Vanity Fair: Men of the Day, No. 2 "He suppressed an isthmus"- J.-B. Gustave de Laboulie