Amédée de Noé

[Cham's father, the French Nobleman Count Louis de Noé, wanted his son to attend the prestigious École Polytechnique; however, Cham failed the entrance examination, reportedly as a result of trying to bribe one of the examiners. After a spell as a trainee at the Ministry of Finance, Cham abandoned the idea of a bureaucratic career and began his artistic training with Charlet and, later, Paul Delaroche. His first albums of sketches were published in 1839. The pseudonym Cham refers both to his initials (Charles Henri Amédée), and to his status as the son of the French count Noé (Noé is the French name for the Biblical Noah, whose son Ham is known in French as Cham). He became a prolific cartoonist, whose distinctive style (based on a select cast of grotesque, grimacing 'puppets' and amusing captions summing up the news of the day) brought him great success throughout his life. Satirical, humorous renderings of works exhibited at the official Salons were another favorite theme. Sadly, his work has not aged well.] http://www.delart.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Cham-Amedee-Charles-Henri.pdf