Zes scènes met diverse personen 1829

Henri-Gérard Fontallard created this print called ‘Zes scènes met diverse personen’ sometime between 1818 and 1840, using etching and possibly other techniques. Fontallard created this multi-paneled print during the Bourbon Restoration, a period marked by attempts to revive traditional social hierarchies and customs in post-revolutionary France. In this context, the artwork’s six scenes present a microcosm of French society, seemingly categorized by gender, class, and age. What stories can we weave together to see how this all connects? Note the contrast between the domesticity of the ‘Confiseur dans’ scene, where a woman is placing sweets into boxes, and the public-facing role of ‘Le vetturier’, who is carrying goods on his back. How do these vignettes reflect the gendered expectations of the era? What social and economic dynamics are captured in these small narratives? Are these scenes reinforcing traditional roles or subtly critiquing them? Consider how these images contribute to a broader understanding of identity and experience in 19th-century France, and how Fontallard engages with the social theater of his time, revealing both its charming facades and underlying tensions.