Quand on a brulé son dernier chevalet! 1845

This lithograph by Honoré Daumier depicts two men, presumably artists, in a state of distress, rendered with a sharp focus on line and shadow. Daumier was a master of this printmaking technique, which involves drawing with a greasy crayon onto a stone matrix. The stone is then treated with chemicals so that ink adheres only to the drawn lines. This process allowed for relatively quick and inexpensive reproduction, and Daumier made the most of it, producing thousands of images for the popular press. This particular print captures the precariousness of the artist's life in 19th-century Paris. The title translates to "When one has burned his last easel!" suggesting a moment of profound crisis. We see the raw reality of artistic labor, stripped bare of romanticism. The men are disheveled, their studio cluttered, their livelihood seemingly gone up in flames. Daumier underscores the social and economic context that shapes artistic creation, questioning the notion of art for art's sake.