Zaïre

1849

First Participation in the Salon

In 1849 Daumier exhibited at the Salon for the first time, showing the painting "The Miller, His Son, and the Donkey"; from the late 1840s he devoted himself increasingly to painting.

1849

State Commission for a Painting

Through the Academy of Fine Arts, Daumier received a commission from the Ministry of the Interior for a painting worth 1,000 francs (later increased to 1,500). He never painted the picture, though he drew advances, and only in 1863 did he deliver to the state the gouache "The Drunkenness of Silenus" (1849).

1852

Baudelaire on Daumier in a Collection of Essays

Baudelaire contributed to a collection of essays published in 1852 celebrating Daumier's lithographs and prints, calling him "one of our leading men not only in caricature but in modern art."

from 1853

Summer Trips to Valmondois and Barbizon

From about 1853 Daumier spent the summer months in Valmondois and Barbizon, where Corot, Daubigny, Millet, and Rousseau were working, deepening his friendships with the artists of the Barbizon school.