1855
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Philosophes d'eau douce ... is a 1855 ink by Honoré Daumier, a Impressionism work, held at National Gallery of Art.
You see two men in boats leaning close, like they’re sharing a secret. One wears a tall hat, the other a round cap. The river around them is calm, almost glassy. Daumier made this as a lithograph—a print using greasy ink on stone. It’s small, just 10 by 8 inches, but the lines feel alive. The way the men tilt toward each other makes you wonder what they’re saying. His dry humor shines here. Look up lithography to see how this print was made.
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.
See the richer artist page
