Theater Audience

Daumier was deeply fascinated by the world of the theater. He created skillful lithographs and oil paintings of street players, backstage scenes, the bourgeoisie in the audience and scenes on the stage. He created several lithographs during the period 1852-64 that incorporate the motif of peeping out from the dark box seats to the bright stage. He clearly shows the figures' enjoyment and boredom in his lithographs, while in this oil painting he renders the figures in silhouette so that their facial expressions can barely be discerned. A black clothed group is set against the gorgeous background of a front row box in the left front of the scene. The audience is shown only in careful, simple silhouettes. This type of expression reflects Daumier's study of figural poses and facial expressions, and his thorough understanding of social position, character and sentiment. Daumier took up the relatively new subject of modern life through broad-stroked silhouettes, abbreviated details, and his rendering of subtle nuances in a limited palette. His work later exerted considerable influence on Manet and Degas. (Source: Masterpieces of the National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo, 2009, cat. no.62)