Contempt of Court by Gaston Hoffmann (1883-1977)

In this scene entitled “Trial: Contempt of Court” by Gaston Hoffmann,
the artist captures a theatrical and almost absurd moment in a courtroom.
A young woman stands center stage, opening her clothing toward the court, while the judges, shocked and bewildered, react strongly to this gesture.
The atmosphere is electric, papers fly around the judge's desk, some judges lean forward in a dramatic and grotesque posture, their mouths open in an expression of surprise or consternation.

The scene is strongly reminiscent of the caricatures of Honoré Daumier, famous for his satirical critiques of the social and judicial institutions of his time.

He will perform several variations of this scene.

HOFFMANN Gaston
Born on January 12, 1883, in Paris Died in Metz in 1977

His mother was from Lorraine, and he lived in Metz and studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris in 1902, where he was a student of Léon Bonnat and Luc-Olivier Merson. at the Académie Julian of Jules Lefebvre (for engraving) and T. Robert-Fleury, and at the Beaux-Arts in Nancy, where he was a student of Jules Larcher.

Gaston Hoffmann exhibited regularly at the Salon des Artistes Français from 1905 onwards, as well as at the Salon des Comiques.