Un jour de verglas c. 19th century

Curator: Looking at "Un jour de verglas," or "A Day of Black Ice," a lithograph attributed to Honoré Daumier from around the 19th century, one immediately senses a social commentary bubbling beneath the surface. Editor: Indeed. My immediate reaction is to the unforgiving depiction of these figures. You can almost feel the cold radiating from the print, that palpable tension of struggling on ice. Look how Daumier's mark-making creates reflections that convey both depth and fragility. Curator: Exactly. Daumier, as a chronicler of Parisian life, uses the mundane experience of icy streets to highlight social divisions. The top-hatted gentleman, precariously balanced, contrasts starkly with the woman drawing water – her labour evident in every etched line. This contrast encapsulates class disparities made visible through daily struggle. Editor: It is also remarkable how he's working within the confines of lithography. That yielding, yet precise, mark, really lends itself to these kinds of characterisations. The graininess feels almost intrinsic to the atmosphere. You can almost see the greasy, water-saturated quality in those quick marks that defines so much of the drawing. And look at the caricature, right down to the pointed features and almost comical precariousness, serving to underscore the indignity of the everyday struggle. Curator: Precisely! His prints were, after all, often published in periodicals like Le Charivari, reaching a wide audience and sparking dialogues around societal inequities. The work wasn’t necessarily meant to hang in galleries. This artwork's purpose extends beyond mere aesthetics; it functions as a mirror reflecting the realities and social strains of 19th-century Paris. Editor: Absolutely, it is through the very processes and distribution methods – how, where, and for whom these images were created – that the commentary finds its strength and resonance. Thinking about the stone the lithograph was pressed upon and the reproducibility of the work; it truly is an amazing way to discuss production. Curator: The romantic undercurrent adds another layer; not of idyllic landscapes, but the romance of witnessing and interpreting the dramas unfolding on Parisian streets. Editor: Looking closer, I find myself drawn into its commentary on materiality of working and being impoverished. A lot to discover. Curator: Indeed. "Un jour de verglas" reminds us that even the most common scenarios can reveal deeper truths about our world.