Le Défenseur (Counsel for the Defense)

c. 1862/1865

Honoré Daumier

Associated Names
Honoré Daumier

Artist, French, 1808 - 1879

This painting shows two people from about the waist up. The person on the left is leaning forward from behind a ledge, both of their arms extended to the right. They have large eyes dripping with tears, a bulbous nose, sagging cheeks, and sparse hair that appears to be graying. They are wearing a dark robe that covers most of their body, with a white cravat visible at their neck. Beside them, resting on the ledge to the left, is a black hat and a stack of books or papers. The person on the right is seated next to the ledge with their hands folded in their lap, facing forward. They have a small, pointed nose and a subtle smile, and they have curly brown hair styled atop their head. They wear a light-colored dress with puffed sleeves and a high collar with a bow. Both of these people have pale skin. Behind them are numerous people sitting in rows in the background. The setting features an arch and paneling, with a ray of light casting diagonally across the space, illuminating the seated person.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    pen and black ink, charcoal, crayon, and watercolor on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Corcoran Collection (William A. Clark Collection)

  • Dimensions

    image: 8 3/16 x 11 13/16 in. (20.7 x 30 cm)
    sheet: 20 3/8 x 23 3/4 in. (51.8 x 60.3 cm)

  • Accession Number

    2014.136.173

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Paul Gallimard, Paris; Ferdinand Heilbuth (1826-1889), Paris, by 1888; his sale, Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, 19-21 May 1890, no. 327; Henri Vever (1854-1942); his sale, Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, 1-2 February 1897, no. 137; to William A. Clark (1839-1925); bequest in 1926 to the Corcoran Gallery of Art (inv. 26.68); acquired in 2014 by the National Gallery of Art.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1888

  • "Peintures, aquarelles, dessins et lithographies des maîtres français de la caricature et de la peinture de moeurs au XIXe siècle," École des Beaux-Arts, Paris, 1888, no. 415.

1889

  • "Exposition Centennale." Paris, 1889, no. 136.

1901

  • "Exposition Daumier." 1901, no. 203.

1907

  • Galerie Rosenberg, Paris, no. 15.

1961

  • "Daumier: Paintings and Drawings." Tate Gallery, London (Arts Council of Great Britain), 1961, no. 222, pl. 33.

1978

  • "The William A. Clark Collection," The Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., April 26-July 16.

1979

  • Honoré Damuier 1808-1879, National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C., 1979, no. 54, repro.

1983

  • "La Vie Moderne." The Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; Columbus Museum of Arts and Sciences, Columbus, GA; Mary and Leigh Block Gallery, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL; The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston TX; Tampa Museum, Tampa, FL; Josyln Museum of Art, Omaha, NE; Akron Art Museum, Akron, OH, 1983-1985, no. 39 (entry by Eden Rafshoon).

1989

  • "The William A. Clark Collection: Treasures of a Copper King." Yellowstone Art Center, Billings, MT, and Montana Historical Society, Helena MT, 1989, reprod. p. 11.

1999

  • "Daumier 1808-1879," Musee Des Beaux-Arts du Canada, Ottawa, June 11- September 6, 1999; Galeries Nationales du Grand Palais, Paris, October 5, 1999 - January 3, 2000; The Phillips Collection, Washington, DC, February 19-May 14, 2000, no. 2225.

2015

  • Focus on the Corcoran: Works on Paper, 1860-1990, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 2015.

Bibliography

1923

  • Klossowski, Erich. Honoré Daumier. Munich,1923: 98, no. 129, Pl. 68.

1925

  • Carroll, Dana. Catalogue of Objects of Fine Art and Other Properties at the Home of William Andrews Clark, 962 Fifth Avenue. [Unpublished], 1925, Part I: 171, no. 168.

1928

  • Illustrated Handbook of The W. A. Clark Collection. Washington, DC, 1928: 41, no. 2068.

1930

  • Fuchs, Eduard. Der Maler Daumier, Munich, 1930: under no. 186b.

1932

  • Corcoran Gallery of Art. Illustrated Handbook of the W.A. Clark Collection. Washington, 1932: 43, no. 2068.

1956

  • Maison, K. E. "Further Daumier Studies I: The Tracings." The Burlingon Magazine 98, no. 638 (May 1956): 165, fig. 44.

1962

  • Larkin, Oliver. Daumier in His Time and Ours. Northampton, MA, 1962: fig. 5.

1968

  • Maison, K. E. Honoré Daumier: Catalogue Raisonné of the Paintings, Watercolours, and Drawings. Vol. II. The Watercolours and Drawings. [Greenwich, CT], 1968, 2: 219, no. 660, pl. 251.

1971

  • Roy, Claude. Daumier dessins. Geneva, 1971: reprod. p. 75.

1995

  • Thomson, Richard. Edgar Degas: Waiting. Malibu, CA, 1995: 84, fig. 57.

1996

  • Laughton, Bruce. Honoré Daumier. New Haven and London, 1996: 94-95, fig. 117.

2006

  • Dumas, Anne. Edgar Degas: The Last Landscapes. London, Merrel, 91-92, fig. 87.

2016

  • National Gallery of Art. Highlights from the National Gallery of Art, Washington. Washington, 2016: 218, repro.

Inscriptions

lower left in pen and black ink: h. Daumier

Wikidata ID

Q64574432

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