Honoré Daumier
The Grand Staircase of the Palace of Justice
1858-1868
Scroll
Honoré Daumier
The Grand Staircase of the Palace of Justice
1858-1868
Physical Qualities
Charcoal, black conté crayon, transparent and opaque watercolor, pen and black ink, and brush and black wash on paper, Sheet: 359 x 267 mm. (14 1/8 x 10 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
The George A. Lucas Collection, purchased with Funds from the State of Maryland, Funds from Laurence and Stella Bendann, Nelson and Juanita Greif Gutman Collection, and Contributions from individuals, foundations, and corporations throughout the Baltimore community
Object Number
1996.48.18685
An attorney prances down the grand staircase of the Palais de Justice with fluttering gown. His snobbish expression, coiffed hair, and pompous demeanor suggest the great esteem in which he holds himself. Rendered in charcoal, crayon, and watercolor, this drawing is one of Honoré Daumier’s masterpieces. Exhibited to great acclaim at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in 1884, it reveals the artist’s superlative skills at observing the folly of human nature.
The Baltimore Museum of Art by purchase, 1996; The Maryland Institute College of Art,
through Henry Walters, Baltimore, by bequest 1909; from George A. Lucas, Paris
through Henry Walters, Baltimore, by bequest 1909; from George A. Lucas, Paris
The Essence of Line: French Drawings from Ingres to Degas
2011-09-19 00:00:00
2011-09-19 00:00:00
"The Baltimore Museum of Art: Celebrating a Museum," The Baltimore Museum of Art, 2014, p. 226.
Christopher Lloyd, Impressionism: Pastels, Watercolors, Drawings, Milwaukee, WI: Milwaukee Art Museum, 2011, p. 28, fig. 6.
Fisher, Jay McKean, et al. The Essence of Line: French drawings from Ingres to Degas. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2005, p. 172-73, ill.
"BMA Today," January - February 2004, p. 9, ill.
Bruce Laughton, Honoré Daumier, New Haven: Yale University Press, 1996, p. 98-99, fig. no. 123, ill. p. 99.
Enid Saunders Candlin, 'The Frenchman with the Satiric Pen', The Christian Science Monitor, Nov. 1, 1993, p. 16.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art Calendar, 25:5 (March-April 1993), cover and p. 3.
'Honoré Daumier: El caricaturista de la burguesia', Saber Ver 36 (September/October 1997), p. 15, ill. p. 14.
Sarah Symmons, Daumier, London: Oresko Books, 1979, p. 47, plate 23.
George Boas, 'The Aesthetics of French Romantic Painting', The Baltimore Museum of Art Annual IV: Studies in Honor of Gertrude Rosenthal, Part Two, 1972, p. 54, fig. 1.
Robert Rey, Honoré Daumier, New York, 1966, p. 32, fig. 40.
Michel Laclotte, The Book of Art, V, New York, 1965, p. 39.
Metropolitan Museum of Art, Miniatures: Daumier, Series MW, New York: 1955.
A Picture Book: 200 Objects in the Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore: 1955, ill. p. 50.
Eduard Fuchs, Der Maler Daumier (2nd edition), Munich: 1930, p. 183, no. 183.
Erich Klossowski, Honoré Daumier (2nd edition), Munich: 1923, no. 127.
Roger Ballu, Les dessins du siècle, Paris: 1884, n.p.
K. E. Maison, Honoré Daumier: Catalogue Raisonné of the Paintings, Watercolours and Drawings, Volume II, Watercolours and Drawings, London, 1968, p. 200, no. 601, plate 223.
Inscribed: lower left in black ink: "h. Daumier"
Markings: WM: Crowned shield with 'H.P.' (Hallines)
