Paul CEZANNE
(1839-1906)

Cezanne was the most revolutionary French painter of his age.His artistic impulses began with the Impressionists and then went beyond them and ultimately reversed their values by excluding atmoshere and transitory effects, in favour of a firm stucture. In this he was a precursor of Cubism and other movements that liberated art from pure naturalism.

In his early works Cezanne fell under the spell of Eugene Delacroix's work. This was unfortunate, since his early oil paintings followed the worst aspects of Delacriox's technique and exagerated them, using black too freely. At this stage he was also influenced by Gustave Courbet, Honore Daumier as well as Manet.

Cezanne became an impressionist, in the early 1870's when he met and stayed with Dr.Gachet, an admirer of modern paintings. This was a critical phase in his career; his palette became lighter and he absorbed the Impressionist doctrines on light and landscape.

His interest in colour coupled with his painstaking slowness and acute self-criticism, led Cezanne more and more to still life as a subject. This was a field of painting in which Cezanne excelled, illustrating his sense of form and colour.

In his last years Cezanne became friendly with the Paris art dealer, Ambriose Vollard, who put on a one-man show of his paintings in 1895. Cezanne was at last recognized, not only in France but also in Europe.