Past Exhibitions

Louis-Philippe, the Pear King

Du 07/04 au 27/06/2010

Horaires : -

Plein tarif / Tarif réduit : -

The progressive change in meaning of a realist portrait of Louis-Philippe in pear appeared for the first time in La Caricature on 21 November 1831 from the hand of its manager, Charles Philipon. According to him this exaggerated metamorphosis entered into the expression of Le Brun and the physiognomic theories of Lavater. Honoré Daumier and Granville, in particular, continued from then on to propagate this image at the convenience of events that lay at the politics practiced by the king of the government of Juste-Milieu.

If Louis-Philippe stands out by a relative absence in the Comedie Humaine, this exposition permits a discussion of the theme of political journalism in which Balzac participated, associating, from 1830 on, with his friend Philipon for the composition of articles inserted into La Caricature. Balzac’s interest for the press brought subsequently to the direction of the newspaper La Chronique du Paris en 1835.

Accrochage organisé par : Yves Gagneux, directeur et conservateur.