Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 04.djvu/256

* CARICATURE. 216 CARICATURE. gerated, so as to make the object ridiculous. In this article the term is used in its usual signifi- gaiK'c as ai)i)licil tii the plastic and graphic arts, especially the latter. The two princijial kinds of caricature are moral, directed against the habits and customs of individuals and of society, and political, directed against corruption and bad government in the State. To be good, a caricature must possess real traits of the orig- inal, exaggerated in a ridiculous sense, but easy to recognize. The artist should have a good sense of form, a ready pencil, and keen observa- tion. To this must be added a considerable knowledge of human nature, and of the influ- ences of the i^assions, habits of life, and modes of thought upon mankind. As caricature does not enter into very high and serious art, neither should the medium or method employed be too dignified or heavy. The use of oil colors might be out of place here, and a certain inattention to studied and aceujate drawing is permissible. The touch should be light and skillful, and the medium best employed is perhaps pen or pencil. Caricature probably is as old as man's ability to express himself in the graphic arts. It is said to have existed in Assyria, and certain gi"o- tesque figures in the Egyptian papyri are prob- ably caricatures. Though averse to distorting the human figure, the Greeks caricatured their gods and heroes. On a Greek vase "Apollo Arriving at Delphi" is represented as a charla- tan of the Greek theatre, and on another. Achil- les, intoxicated, is borne on the shoulders of Ajax. We know from the statements of Horace and Cicero that caricature was common in Rome. A fresco found at Gragnano represents .Eneas, his father and his son, with dogs' heads and otherwise caricatured. Another like the preced- ing in the Museo Gregoriano, Rome, represents a philosopher as a pigmy preaching to a fox. Some of the designs called "Graffiti," found at Hercu- laneura and Pompeii, are caricatures. Such a design, found near the Palatine Hill, Rome, represents "Christ on the Cross," with an ass's head, adored by a believer, with the inscription, "Alexamenus, adore thy God." The grotesque was a marked feature of the art of the Middle Ages, especially during the Gothic period. Caricatures abounded in the illumina- tions of manuscripts and in the thousands of statues which ornamented the church portals. Satan, Death, and other un|)opular jjcrsonages were much satirized, but the Church was by no means spared, the monks receiving an luiusiial share. The "Dance of Death" (q.v. ) was a cari- cature, on a large scale, of Death dominating all classes of society. The painters of the Renaissance frequently made use of caricatures. Those of Leonardo da Vinci, most wonderful drawings, were purely artistic, and Mithout reference to morals or poli- tics. Annibale Carracci used caricature as a weapon against the Naturalists when, in his pic- ture of the Naples Museum, he portrayed Cara- vaggio, his great rival, as a dwarf with monkeys and parrot. The school of the Carracci produced a number of good caricaturists. Other distin- guished Italians of the Seventeenth Century were Bacio del Pianco in Florence, and Pietro Bellotti in Venice : of the Eighteenth Century, the Roman artist Pierleone Ghezzi. In Germany, Hans Holbein's "Dance of Death" and his illus- trations of Erasmus's Praise of Follij were carica- tures of the highest artistic order, and Lucas t'ranach's prints ridiculing the Pope and Cathol- icism were of the widest influence. The pictures of Brauwer, Teniers. and Ostade, though high works of art, are real caricatures of peasant life. The invention of the printing-press gave to caricature a new power, but it was hindered from using this power by the lack of freedom of the press, ■ In France, each party made use of cari- cature during the wars of the Reformation, and the well-known "Songes Drolatiques," attributed to Rabelais, ridiculed both parties, A really great caricaturist of the Seventeenth Century was Callot, but he devoted himself to satirizing general types. Under Louis XIII. and his suc- cessor, caricature was active, especially at the close of the reign of Louis XIV,, who was nuich annoyed bj' the Dutch artist Romain de Iloghe, a pupil of Callot, in the service of William of Orange. The caricaturists lashed, with a merci- less hand, the immoralities of Louis XV., and the clerical regime. During the Revolution cari- cature became a means of political propaganda, and was especially used by the Republicans. Each event of the Revolution was lauded or at- tacked, the King and (Juecn being especially noticed. Xapoleon I. confined caricature to man- ners and customs, but the English lampooned him all the more for the repression in France. After the Restoration the returned aristocracy and the clerical tendencies of the Kings formed excellent butts of ridicule, even such artists as Delacroix and Decamps taking part. The Revo- lution of 1830 brought greater liberty of the press and, aided by the invention of lithograpliy, caricature flourished as never before. In that year Charles Philippon founded La Caricai lire, which was followed by Charivari and the Jour- iial pour Hire. Louis Philippe was the most cari- catured of all French monarchs, his pear-shaped head forming a peculiarly tempting butt of ridi- cule. A brilliant groiip of caricaturists arose, who were of great importance in the history of art, and did nuich to bring art back from classi- cism to real life. Honore Daumier, in particular, lashed the Chamber of Deputies, the Peers, and the Kings, as he afterwards ridiculed Xapoleon III, Among other artists were Carle Vernet, Gavarni, Henri !Monnier, and Cham, probably the most important group of caricaturists the world has seen. L'nder Xaiiolcon political caricature was confined to external polities, but the Third Republic brought liberty, and saw the develop- ment of such talents as Gn'vin, Wilette, Caran d'Ache, Pille, Boutet de Monvel, and others. The first great English caricaturist was Ho- garth (1007-1704), who satirized social vice with realism and force. Political caricature began with the Ministry of Walpole in 1721, but the artists were mainly foreign. In the latter half of the century an important group of native art- ists arose, chief among whom were .Tames (iillray and Tluimas Rawlinson. They reflected political sentiments in the minutest manner, and are, in fact, a valuable source of history for the period. Their work is, however, rather coarse, in com- parison with that of the present. Chief among the artists of the early half of the Xineteenth Century were George Criiikshank, for "moral comedies," and the brothers .Tohn and Richard Doyle for political caricature. In 1841 was founded Punch, or the Lonrlon Charivari, in which the more refined modern caricature of Leech