The Pond, Cézanne

Cézanne in Auvers

In the early 70s, Cézanne lived in Auvers, a small town on the outskirts of Paris. It was here that he learned to observe nature and absorbed the imagery to paint landscapes for more than a decade.

The Pond Painting

In painting The Pond, Cézanne used his earliest technique, short brushstrokes all in the same direction. This way of applying oil would transform, a decade later, into a more matured style, where the strokes appear much more blurred and in all directions.

The figures appear overlaid and highlighted against the landscape, in an almost artificial manner. Also, the way of integrating characters would change in the following decade, where the figures begin to be softer and with more graceful movements.

The Pond is currently on display at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.