1845
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Ou peut conduire la lecture du Constitutionnel! is a 1845 ink by Honoré Daumier, a Romanticism work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This sketch shows a man in a top hat standing in a swampy area, holding a large rolled-up paper labeled *"Constitutionnel."* His face is hidden, and the ground around him is muddy with water and plants. The text at the bottom reads *"Ou peut conduire la lecture du Constitutionnel!"*—which roughly means *"Where can reading the Constitutionnel lead you!"* The swamp looks like a joke about how deep politics—or maybe just newspapers—can sink you. The artist used quick, sketchy lines to make it feel urgent and a little silly. Want to see more of this artist’s sharp, funny work? Check out Daumier, Honoré.
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.
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