Étude pour pastorale, Paul Cézanne, circa 1870

Paul cézanne, french, 1839–1906 étude pour pastorale, ca. 1870 graphite 10. 2 x 13. 3 cm. (4 x 5 1/4 in. ) sight: 9. 3 × 12. 8 cm (3 11/16 × 5 1/16 in. ) the henry and rose pearlman foundation, on long-term loan to the princeton university art museum l. 1988. 62. 50 chappuis 250 provenance: artist’s son, paul cézanne (1872–1947), paris. [curt valentin (1902–1954), new york]. Henry pearlman, new york, by 1959; henry and rose pearlman foundation, 1983. Gallery label: drawing was fundamental to cezanne’s creative process. This is a preliminary sketch for one of the artist’s early romantic fantasies, in which he paid homage to the pastoral landscapes by the venetian renaissance painters titian and giorgione. In pastoral, cezanne revisited the picnic theme of manet’s celebrated le déjeuner sur l'herbe (1863), positioning himself as the large reclining figure at the center of a lush riverside setting that includes a bottle and glass still life; he is accompanied by two clothed male companions and three nude female bathers. Robust contours and slashing parallel strokes establish the essential forms and tonal contrasts of this enigmatic scene. Date: circa 1870. Collection: Princeton University Art Museum. Cézanne, Paul, Étude pour Pastorale, ca. 1870