| Impressionism not only encouraged Cézanne to adopt a
brighter palette, but also gave him a way of expressing
form. Rather than model three-dimensional shapes by
gradually blending shades from dark to light, Cézanne,
like the impressionists, gave them form by juxtaposing
colors. "There is neither line nor modeling," he
said, "there is only contrast."
The tipped plate is molded by individual arcs of peachy
ivory and cooler blue tones. The shadow that falls below
it does not deepen continuously but is a patchwork of
blues and complementary rust-colored browns. Rounded
fruits, like the flat surfaces of the table, are built up
of what Cézanne called "little planes" of
color, applied in brushstrokes that echo the faceted sides
of the pitcher.
Cézanne painted this same pitcher and table in other
canvases. His constant rearranging of these and other
props was a way to understand and create structure. The
very selection of objects, combining, for example, the
roundness of fruits and bowls and the angles of furniture,
reflects careful decisions about order and composition.
This analytical way of seeing the world, whether the
countryside of Provence or the man-made landscape of a
still life, had great impact on the next generation of
artists. For Picasso, Cézanne was a "mother";
for Matisse, "father to us all." Yet Cézanne
himself stressed that he painted as Pissarro and the
impressionists had taught him, from nature and according
to his sensations. |
