Broadside with 48 scenes relating to zarzuela(?) 'los infiernos de Madrid' 1871

Editor: So, this is "Broadside with 48 scenes relating to zarzuela(?) 'los infiernos de Madrid'," made in 1871 by José María Marés. It's a lithograph and etching, and wow, it's just packed with tiny scenes. It gives me a… chaotic, storybook vibe. What catches your eye when you look at this? Curator: Chaotic, definitely! It’s like a visual gossip column exploding on paper. Each scene, I imagine, is a little jab, a wry observation from Madrid society, perfectly pitched for a knowing wink. It’s not aiming for timeless beauty, you see, but a momentary, perhaps even scandalous, spark. Do you get the feeling it's almost disposable, like a meme before memes existed? Editor: That's so true, the meme comparison makes total sense! It’s very specific, right? Like you’d need to be *in* on the joke to fully understand each panel. It is making me think about who the audience would have been at that time. Curator: Exactly. Think about the cultural context - Madrid, 1871. What were people obsessed with? Who were they making fun of? It's fascinating how much information is packed into one of these satirical pieces. Consider how a comic like this may serve a cultural role by deflating stuffed shirts and undermining social elites. You might want to think about each vignette on its own to understand its place in a greater social conversation. Editor: It’s wild to imagine someone poring over this with their morning coffee, catching up on all the drama. Curator: It is! It reminds me that art doesn't always have to be grand and monumental. Sometimes, the smallest, most fleeting things capture a moment in time more perfectly. Perhaps one panel, depicting a chance encounter at a cafe or an inside joke known only to a few friends, perfectly preserves a fragment of daily life for the benefit of a new generation! It encourages one to think deeply about those little everyday occasions when viewed in this perspective. Editor: I guess I never thought about graphic art being like a time capsule. Now I want to go research everything about 1870s Madrid society!