Paul Cézanne: influences, peers and legacy

Every connection with its receipt

Cézanne's path runs from the Louvre's old masters and the Provençal light of Aix through Pissarro's patient tutelage to the shattered planes of Cubism. He was a reader as much as a looker — Virgil and Lucretius shaped his sense of nature as much as Delacroix shaped his sense of color. This mix traces the hermit of the Jas de Bouffan from his sources to the painters who built the twentieth century on his apples.

The Kynda mix for Paul Cézanne

• Key Influence · The Death of Sardanapalus by Eugène Delacroix (1827). Delacroix was Cézanne's lifelong idol; he kept a watercolor by him and planned an 'Apotheosis of Delacroix' canvas honoring him, with Pissarro and Monet among the mourning figures. The Romantic's violent color contrasts and loaded brush shaped Cézanne's early 'couillarde' period of murders and orgies, painted with a palette knife in the 1860s, before Impressionism cooled his palette toward the structural order of his maturity.}
• Influencia Obscura · De rerum natura by Lucretius (c. 55 BC). At the Collège Bourbon in Aix, Cézanne excelled at Latin verse and read the classical poets alongside Émile Zola; he could recite long passages from memory into old age. Lucretius's vision of a world composed of colliding particles, with nature in continuous flux and no divine ordering hand, underlies Cézanne's late method of building form from discrete touches of color rather than drawn outline.
• Local Roots · The Rougon-Macquart: L'Œuvre by Émile Zola (1886). Zola and Cézanne were schoolmates in Aix-en-Provence, swimming in the Arc and hiking the countryside below Mont Sainte-Victoire; Zola later drew Cézanne to Paris and supported him financially. L'Œuvre's failed painter Claude Lantier, who destroys himself over an unachievable masterpiece, effectively ended the friendship — Cézanne wrote a cold thank-you note and the two never met again.
• Beyond the Medium · Georgics by Virgil (29 BC). Cézanne's schoolboy Latin prizes in Aix were won for verse, and Virgil remained a touchstone — his late Bathers compositions stage nude figures in a wooded Arcadian landscape that owes more to pastoral poetry than to any life model, since Cézanne worked from memory and old studies. The Georgics' georgic attention to land, labor, and the turning seasons parallels his returns to the same Provençal motifs.
• Peer · Rouen Cathedral series by Claude Monet (1894). Monet and Cézanne both showed at the First Impressionist Exhibition of 1874 and exhibited together again in 1877; Cézanne praised Monet as 'only an eye, but my God what an eye.' Monet owned several Cézannes and hosted him at Giverny in 1894, where the touchy Provençal met Rodin and Clemenceau. The serial return to one motif under changing light runs parallel to Cézanne's own campaigns on Mont Sainte-Victoire.
• From the Canon · The Card Players by Paul Cézanne (1890-1895). Five canvases of Jas de Bouffan farmhands, reduced from crowded genre scene to two men and a bottle, show Cézanne stripping anecdote away until only architecture of form remains. He used local laborers as models over long sessions — his demand for stillness that drove Vollard to sit more than a hundred times. The series is the clearest demonstration of how he converted Dutch genre tradition into modern structure.
• Key Collaborator · Portrait of Ambroise Vollard by Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1917). Vollard gave Cézanne his first solo exhibition in 1895, assembling some 150 works and effectively creating his market and reputation after decades of Salon rejection. The dealer sat for Cézanne through 115 sessions, famously falling asleep and being told he must sit 'like an apple.' Renoir's portrait of the same dealer shows the figure who brokered the entire Post-Impressionist generation to collectors.
• Legacy · Les Demoiselles d'Avignon by Pablo Picasso (1907). Picasso called Cézanne 'my one and only master' and 'the father of us all.' The 1907 Cézanne memorial retrospective at the Salon d'Automne, together with the late Bathers, detonated Cubism: faceted planes, multiple simultaneous viewpoints, and the refusal of single-point perspective are all extrapolations of Cézanne's method. Picasso later bought a house at Vauvenargues, at the foot of Mont Sainte-Victoire.

What influenced Paul Cézanne

• Eugène Delacroix by Eugène Delacroix (1798). The article explicitly identifies Delacroix as an influence on Cézanne. (also via The Death of Sardanapalus) “In contrast to the official artistic life of France, Cézanne was under the influence of Gustave Courbet and Eugène Delacroix , who strove for a renewal of art and demanded the depiction of unembellished reality.” (Wikipedia)
• Gustave Courbet by Gustave Courbet (1819). The article explicitly identifies Courbet as an influence on Cézanne. (also via The Burial at Ornans) “In 1866–67, inspired by the example of Courbet, Cézanne painted a series of paintings with a palette knife .” (Wikipedia)
• Camille Pissarro by Camille Pissarro (1830). Pissarro had a formative influence on Cézanne. (also via Hoar Frost, the Old Road to Ennery, Pontoise, Still Life with Soup Tureen) “Initially, the friendship formed in the mid-1860s between Pissarro and Cézanne was that of master and disciple, in which Pissarro exerted a formative influence on the younger artist.” (Wikipedia)
• Nicolas Poussin (1594). The article reports Cézanne’s stated aim of recreating Poussin after nature. (also via Et in Arcadia ego) “His statement "I want to make of impressionism something solid and lasting like the art in the museums", [ 104 ] and his contention that he was recreating Poussin "after nature" underscored his desire to unite observation of nature with …” (Wikipedia)
• The Death of Sardanapalus by Eugène Delacroix (1827). The Death of Sardanapalus (Eugène Delacroix) — titan for Paul Cézanne “In contrast to the official artistic life of France, Cézanne was under the influence of Gustave Courbet and Eugène Delacroix, who strove for a renewal of art and demanded the depiction of unembellished reality.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Et in Arcadia ego by Nicolas Poussin (1638). Et in Arcadia ego (Nicolas Poussin) — titan for Paul Cézanne “Until the 20th century he remained a major inspiration for such classically-oriented artists as Jacques-Louis David, Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres and Paul Cézanne.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Georgics by Virgil (29). Georgics (Virgil) — culture for Paul Cézanne “They debated art, read Homer and Virgil and practiced writing their own poems.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Romanticism. The article identifies Romanticism as an influence on Cézanne’s early work. “While his early works were influenced by Romanticism —such as the murals in the Jas de Bouffan country house—and Realism” (Wikipedia)
• Realism. The article identifies Realism as an influence on Cézanne’s early work. “While his early works were influenced by Romanticism —such as the murals in the Jas de Bouffan country house—and Realism” (Wikipedia)
• Impressionism. Cézanne developed his pictorial language through examining Impressionist expression. “Cézanne arrived at a new pictorial language through intense examination of Impressionist forms of expression.” (Wikipedia)
• Joseph Gibert. Cézanne studied drawing under Joseph Gibert. “In 1857, he began attending the Free Municipal School of Drawing in Aix, where he studied drawing under Joseph Gibert, a Spanish monk.” (Wikipedia)
• Jupiter and Thetis by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres. Cézanne’s winter mural alludes to Ingres’s Jupiter and Thetis. “The winter picture is additionally dated 1811, alluding to Ingres' painting Jupiter and Thetis , painted at that time and on display in the Musée Granet.” (Wikipedia)
• Michelangelo (1475). Cézanne copied works by Michelangelo while studying at the Louvre. “He often copied at the Louvre from works by old masters such as Michelangelo , Rubens and Titian .” (Wikipedia)
• Peter Paul Rubens. Cézanne copied works by Rubens while studying at the Louvre. “He often copied at the Louvre from works by old masters such as Michelangelo , Rubens and Titian .” (Wikipedia)
• Titian (1488). Cézanne copied works by Titian while studying at the Louvre. “He often copied at the Louvre from works by old masters such as Michelangelo , Rubens and Titian .” (Wikipedia)
• Hippolyte Taine. Cézanne’s approach to space and volume was informed by reading Taine. “His interest in new ways of modelling space and volume derived from the stereoscopy obsession of his era and from reading Hippolyte Taine ’s Berkelean theory of spatial perception .” (Wikipedia)
• Claude Monet by Claude Monet. Cézanne names Monet alongside Pissarro when explaining a change in his approach to painting. “J'ai compris lorsque je rencontrai Monet et Pissarro, qui, eux, s'étaient débarrassés de tout ce bagage, qu'il ne fallait demander au passé que l'enseignement de la Peinture.” (Mercure de France)
• Paolo Veronese by Paolo Veronese. Cézanne says he reworked Veronese’s paintings in his own manner when young. “Ma jeunesse a été remplie de toiles exaltées, où tour à tour je refaisais à ma manière Véronèse, Ribera, Le Caravage, le Calabrèse, Courbet et Delacroix lui-même.” (Mercure de France)
• Tintoretto by Tintoretto. In a letter to Émile Bernard, Cézanne joins him in celebrating Tintoretto. “Oui j'approuve votre admiration pour le plus vaillants des Vénitiens, nous célébrons Tintoret.” (Courtauld Gallery Collection Online)
• The Burial at Ornans by Gustave Courbet (1850). The Burial at Ornans (Gustave Courbet) — titan for Paul Cézanne “In contrast to the official artistic life of France, Cézanne was under the influence of Gustave Courbet and Eugène Delacroix, who strove for a renewal of art and demanded the depiction of unembellished reality.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• De rerum natura by Lucretius. De rerum natura (Lucretius) — ghost for Paul Cézanne (wikidata.org)
• The Temptation of Saint Anthony by Gustave Flaubert (1874). The Temptation of Saint Anthony (Gustave Flaubert) — ghost for Paul Cézanne (openlibrary.org)
• Les Fleurs du mal by Charles Baudelaire (1857). Les Fleurs du mal (Charles Baudelaire) — culture for Paul Cézanne (openlibrary.org)
• Cézanne's Doubt by Maurice Merleau-Ponty (1945). Cézanne's Doubt (Maurice Merleau-Ponty) — culture for Paul Cézanne “Lyotard sums it up: "One can also say that the uncanniness of the oil paintings and watercolours dedicated to mountains and fruits derives both from a deep sense of the disappearance of appearances and from the demise of the visible worl…” (en.wikipedia.org)

Peers and kindred spirits

• Pierre-Auguste Renoir. Cézanne and Renoir painted together in L’Estaque. (also via Portrait of Ambroise Vollard) “He painted with Renoir there in 1882 and visited Renoir and Monet in 1883.” (Wikipedia)
• Paul Gauguin. Cézanne worked with Gauguin in Pontoise. (also via Vision After the Sermon) “In 1881, Cézanne worked in Pontoise with Paul Gauguin and Pissarro; Cézanne returned to Aix at the end of the year.” (Wikipedia)
• Rouen Cathedral series by Claude Monet (1894). Rouen Cathedral series (Claude Monet) — peer for Paul Cézanne “During this time he got to know many young artists, after Pissarro also Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Alfred Sisley.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Vision After the Sermon by Paul Gauguin (1888). Vision After the Sermon (Paul Gauguin) — peer for Paul Cézanne “In 1881, Cézanne worked in Pontoise with Paul Gauguin and Pissarro; Cézanne returned to Aix at the end of the year.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Portrait of Père Tanguy by Vincent van Gogh (1887). Portrait of Père Tanguy (Vincent van Gogh) — peer for Paul Cézanne “He's the strangest guy imaginable." From late 1872 to 1874, Cézanne lived with Hortense and their son Paul in Auvers-sur-Oise, where he met the doctor and art lover Paul Gachet, later the painter Vincent van Gogh's doctor.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Portrait of Ambroise Vollard by Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1917). Portrait of Ambroise Vollard (Pierre-Auguste Renoir) — collaborator for Paul Cézanne “During this time he got to know many young artists, after Pissarro also Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Alfred Sisley.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• The Rougon-Macquart: L'Œuvre by Émile Zola (1886). The Rougon-Macquart: L'Œuvre (Émile Zola) — geography for Paul Cézanne “In 1852, Cézanne entered the Collège Bourbon in Aix (now Collège Mignet), where he became friends with Émile Zola, who was in a less advanced class, as well as Baptistin Baille—three friends who came to be known as "Les Trois Inséparable…” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Hoar Frost, the Old Road to Ennery, Pontoise by Camille Pissarro (1873). Hoar Frost, the Old Road to Ennery, Pontoise (Camille Pissarro) — geography for Paul Cézanne “Until the late 1890s, it was mainly fellow artists such as Camille Pissarro and the art dealer and gallery owner Ambroise Vollard who discovered Cézanne's work.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Le Château Noir and Provençal views by Joachim Gasquet (1921). Le Château Noir and Provençal views (Joachim Gasquet) — geography for Paul Cézanne “Classmates were the later sculptor Philippe Solari and Henri Gasquet, father of the writer Joachim Gasquet, who was to publish his book Cézanne in 1921, a testament to the life of the artist.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Still Life with Soup Tureen by Camille Pissarro. Still Life with Soup Tureen (Camille Pissarro) — collaborator for Paul Cézanne “Until the late 1890s, it was mainly fellow artists such as Camille Pissarro and the art dealer and gallery owner Ambroise Vollard who discovered Cézanne's work.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Portrait of Gustave Geffroy by Paul Signac (1890). Portrait of Gustave Geffroy (Paul Signac) — collaborator for Paul Cézanne

Who Paul Cézanne influenced

• Georges Braque (1882). Braque's style evolved under the influence of Cézanne. (also via Mont Sainte-Victoire, Houses at l'Estaque) “Braque's style began a slow evolution as he became influenced by Paul Cézanne who had died in 1906” (Wikipedia)
• Pablo Picasso. Picasso's proto-Cubist development is stated to have been influenced by Cézanne. (also via The Large Bathers, Les Demoiselles d'Avignon) “At the time, Pablo Picasso was influenced by Gauguin , Cézanne, African masks and Iberian sculpture” (Wikipedia)
• Henri Matisse. The article attributes to Matisse a statement acknowledging Cézanne’s artistic importance. (also via Three Bathers, Le Bonheur de vivre) “Both Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso are said to have remarked that Cézanne "is the father of us all".” (Wikipedia)
• L'Œuvre. The article connects Zola’s fictional painter to his view of Cézanne. “Zola's novel of a tragically failed painter, Claude Lantier, unmistakably based on Cézanne.” (Artforum)
• Hommage à Cézanne. Denis made a painting explicitly titled as a homage to Cézanne. (also via Still Life with Bowl of Fruit) “Bien que novateurs, Maurice Denis et les siens ne se considèrent pas moins comme les disciples d’un maître, Cézanne, envers qui ils se sentent redevables.” (L’Histoire par l’image)
• Diego Rivera. Cézanne’s paintings inspired a change in Rivera’s work. (also via Mont Sainte-Victoire) “Around 1917, inspired by Paul Cézanne 's paintings, Rivera shifted toward Post-Impressionism , using simple forms and large patches of vivid colors.” (Wikipedia)
• Cubism. The article places Cézanne’s work in the artistic development leading to Cubism. “Influences Paul Cézanne Paul Gauguin Gustave Courbet Georges Seurat Paul Signac Maurice Princet Esprit Jouffret Neo-impressionism Pointillism Divisionism Symbolism (arts) Fauvism Proto-Cubism Chronophotography” (Wikipedia)
• Three Lives. Stein credited Cézanne's portrait with inspiring Three Lives. (via Portrait of Mme Cézanne) “that the stylistic method of (Three Lives) had been influenced by the Cézanne portrait under which she sat writing.” (Wikipedia)
• Gertrude Stein. The article identifies Cézanne as Stein's largest visual-art influence. (also via Portrait of Madame Cézanne with a Fan) “Though Stein collected cubist paintings, especially those of Picasso, the largest visual arts influence on her literary work is that of Cézanne .” (Wikipedia)
• Helen Frankenthaler (1928). Elderfield states Cézanne's watercolors were an important early influence on Frankenthaler. “John Elderfield wrote that the watercolors of Paul Cézanne and John Marin were important early influences” (Wikipedia)
• Marcel Duchamp. The article identifies Cézanne as an influence on Duchamp's paintings. “Fauves and Paul Cézanne 's proto-Cubism influenced his paintings” (Wikipedia)
• Les Demoiselles d'Avignon by Pablo Picasso (1907). Les Demoiselles d'Avignon (Pablo Picasso) — legacy for Paul Cézanne “Both Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso are said to have remarked that Cézanne "is the father of us all".” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Houses at l'Estaque by Georges Braque (1908). Houses at l'Estaque (Georges Braque) — legacy for Paul Cézanne “The two exhibitions motivated many artists, such as Georges Braque, André Derain, Wassily Kandinsky, Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso, on their crucial insights for 20th century art.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Le Bonheur de vivre by Henri Matisse (1905). Le bonheur de vivre (Henri Matisse) — legacy for Paul Cézanne “Both Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso are said to have remarked that Cézanne "is the father of us all".” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Joan Miró. Cézanne inspired Miró's early art. “His early art, like that of the similarly influenced Fauves and Cubists, was inspired by Vincent van Gogh and Paul Cézanne.” (Wikipedia)
• Portrait of Vincent Nubiola. The passage includes Portrait of Vincent Nubiola among works showing Cézanne's influence. “His early modernist works include Portrait of Vincent Nubiola (1917), Siurana (the path) , Nord-Sud (1917) and Painting of Toledo . These works show the influence of Cézanne” (Wikipedia)
• Nord-Sud. The passage includes Nord-Sud among works showing Cézanne's influence. “His early modernist works include Portrait of Vincent Nubiola (1917), Siurana (the path) , Nord-Sud (1917) and Painting of Toledo . These works show the influence of Cézanne” (Wikipedia)
• Mary Beth Edelson. The article identifies Cézanne as an inspiration for Edelson’s 1960s work. “Her work in the 1960s—inspired by Henri Matisse , Paul Cézanne and Édouard Manet —were made of scenes of mothers and children.” (Wikipedia)
• Alberto Giacometti. The Large Bathers (Paul Cézanne) — titan for Alberto Giacometti (via The Large Bathers) “Next to Matisse, Alberto Giacometti dealt most extensively with Cézanne's style of representation.” (en.wikipedia.org)
• Ernest Hemingway. Mont Sainte-Victoire (Paul Cézanne) — culture for Ernest Hemingway (via Mont Sainte-Victoire) “Ernest Hemingway compared his writing to Cézanne's landscapes.” (en.wikipedia.org)