Cezanne

by Paul Cézanne, Walter Feilchenfeldt, Isabelle Cahn

A definitive survey of the life and work of the Paul Ce+a7zanne follwows the evolution of his art from drawing school in the 1860s to his death in 1906, providing more than six hundred reproductions of drawings, watercolors, paintings, and sketchbook pages that demonstrate his masterful artistic style.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction

600 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

Paul Cézanne (January 19, 1839 - October 22, 1906) was a French artist and Post-Impressionist painter.

His work laid the foundations of the transition from the 19th century conception of artistic endeavour to a new and radically different world of art in the 20th century.

Cézanne can be said to form the bridge between late 19th century Impressionism and the early 20th century's new line of artistic enquiry, Cubism. The line attributed to both Matisse and Picasso that Cézanne "is the father of us all" cannot be easily dismissed.

Cézanne's work demonstrates a mastery of design, colour, composition and draftsmanship. His often repetitive, sensitive and exploratory brushstrokes are highly characteristic and clearly recognizable. He used planes of colour and small brushstrokes that build up to form complex fields, at once both a direct expression of the sensations of the observing eye and an abstraction from observed nature. The paintings convey Cézanne's intense study of his subjects, a searching gaze and a dogged struggle to deal with the complexity of human visual perception.

Reviews

[Janelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wanted to read a book on Cezanne after finishing Zola’s The Masterpiece because I realised I knew little about him apart from him and Zola being childhood friends. This book has an excellent overview of his work; criticism both contemporary and more recent; paintings, drawings and sketchbooks from all his work arranged in decades and there’s a very detailed chronology of his life.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful and huge book, going through each decade of his painting life, starting with 1860 til his death in 1906. I love his thick brush strokes. Bathers and landscapes are my favorite, but there are portraits here, and still life and fruit. It is funny to read early critiques that did not like neither Cezanne nor Manet, thinking their style too ugly.

He was friends with Claude Monet and Camille Pissarro. In 1873 Cézanne met Vincent van Gogh and in 1874 he exhibited at the Impressionist's first showcase. He drifted from the impressionist style, but I like his twist. Heavy brush strokes that look 'hasty' or 'violent' allow these paintings to become more fascinating the closer in distance you get to them.

I 'stole' this book for $5 at a used book sale. I love all the impressionists. I need to collect similar 1-artist collections like this one.

[Phillip · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.0 / 5.0
Very detailed explanation of works depicted, but sometimes a bit exaggerated and fawning. Graphics are not very good.

[Lydia · Rating 4 out of 5]

browsed large catalog, looking for technique for his unique stroke method. love the Choquet and Madame Cezanne paintings from 1870s.