Philipon, Caricaturist
Benjamin Roubaud
(French, 1811–1847)
Philipon, Caricaturist, 1838
Lithograph
General Acquisitions Fund, 1951.80.12
« On sait que la Caricature
Pour père a Philipon. Si c’était moins constant,
On n’en douterait plus devant sa portraicture :
A sa fille il ressemble tant ! »
“Everyone knows that Philipon is the father of Carica-ture.
If you ever doubt it, just look at his portrait;
He looks just like his daughter!”
The term caricature is derived from the Italian verb caricare, meaning “to load, to charge, or to exaggerate.” A French synonym for caricature, portrait charge, is literally an exaggerated or “charged” portrait.