Paul Cézanne (1839 - 1906)

Précis

Paul Cézanne was born in Aix, in the south of France. Under pressure from his father, a successful banker, he began his life preparing for law, but in his early 20's (and with the encouragement of his good friend, the author Emile Zola) he decided to focus all his energies on painting. Until his father passed away and left his son enough money to be financially independent, Cézanne was reliant on his father for financial support. His work was enthusiastically supported by the impressionists, but few others until late in his life. For example, in 1882, Cézanne finally got a painting accepted by the Salon through a technicality - he submitted it as a pupil of Guillemet, thus ducking the jury.

The Card Players, o/c, 1890-1892, Louvre
Image courtesy of Mark Harden's Artchive

Cézanne was extremely critical of other painters and most of his peers, although he greatly respected Delacroix. On 25 July 1904, he wrote to Emile Bernard, "The greatest, you know them better than I; the Venetians and the Spaniards." * Later in his life, he became friends with many young painters who looked up to him and to whom he gave advice. He was dogmatic on the need to work from nature. Cézanne spent half his life hiding his wife and son from his father for fear of losing his financial support. In the end, however, Cézanne wanted nothing to do with his wife and preferred living with his mother and sister.

Excerpts from Paul Cézanne's Letters (source)

Emile Zola to Cézanne, 30 December 1859

"When you take up your brushes: 'my son, my son,' says your father, 'think of the future. One dies with genius, and one eats with money.' Ah! Unfortunately, my poor Cezanne, life is a billiard ball which does not always roll where the hand would like to push it..."

Emile Zola to Cézanne, 16 April, 1860

"there are two men inside the artist, the poet and the craftsman. One is born a poet. One becomes a craftsman..."

Cézanne to Emile Zola, 19 October 1866

"But you know all pictures painted inside, in the studio, will never be as good as those done outside. When out-of-door scenes are represented, the contrasts between the figures and the ground is astounding and the landscape is magnificent. I see some superb things and I shall have to make up my mind only to do things out-of-doors."

Cézanne to Joachim Gasquet, 30 April 1896

"All my life I have worked to be able to earn my living, but I thought that one could do good painting without attracting attention to one's private life. Certainly, an artist wishes to raise himself intellectually as much as possible, but the man must remain obscure. The pleasure must be found in the work."

Cézanne to Charles Camoin, 28 January 1902

"...one says more and perhaps better things about painting when facing the motif than when discussing purely speculative theories -- in which as often as not one loses oneself."

Cézanne to Louis Aurenche, 10 March 1902

"A little bit of confidence in yourself and work. Don't ever forget your art, sic itur ad astra [trans: 'thus one reaches the stars']"

Cézanne to Charles Camoin, 22 February 1903

"Everything, especially in art, is theory developed and applied in contact with nature."

Cézanne to Charles Camoin, 13 September 1903

"Couture used to say to his pupils: 'keep good company, that is: go to the Louvre. But after having seen the great masters who repose there, we must hasten out and by contact with nature revive within ourselves the instincts, the artistic sensations which live in us.' ... What shall I wish you: good studies made after nature, that is the best thing."

Cézanne to Emile Bernard, 15 April 1904

"May I repeat what I told you here: treat nature by means of the cylinder, the sphere, the cone, everything brought into proper perspective so that each side of an object or a plane is directed towards a central point. Lines parallel to the horizon give breadth... lines perpendicular to this horizon give depth. But nature for us men is more depth than surface, whence the need to introduce into our light vibrations, represented by the reds and yellows, a sufficient amount of blueness to give the feel of air."

Cézanne to Emile Bernard, 12 May 1904

"The artist must scorn all judgment that is not based on an intelligent observation of character. He must beware of the literary spirit which so often causes the painter to deviate from his true path -- the concrete study of nature -- to lose himself too long in intangible speculation. The Louvre is a good book to consult but it must be only an intermediary. The real and immense study to be undertaken is the manifold picture of nature."

Cézanne to Emile Bernard, 26 May 1904

"But I must always come back to this: painters must devote themselves entirely to the study of nature and try to produce pictures which will be an education. Talking about art is almost useless. The work which brings about some progress in one's own craft is sufficient compensation for not being understood by imbeciles."

Cézanne to Emile Bernard, 25 July 1904

"Don't be an art critic, but paint, there lies salvation."

Cézanne to Emile Bernard, 1905

"The Louvre is the book in which we learn to read. We must not, however, be satisfied with retaining the beautiful formulas of our illustrious predecessors. Let us go forth to study beautiful nature, let us try to free our minds from them, let us strive to express ourselves according to our personal temperment. Time and reflection, moreover, modify little by little our vision, and at last comprehension comes to us."