The Feast. The Banquet of Nebuchadnezzar 1870

Editor: Here we have Paul Cézanne’s “The Feast. The Banquet of Nebuchadnezzar,” an oil painting from 1870. There's almost a dreamlike quality to the scene, with bodies sprawled haphazardly and a very dynamic use of color and swirling brushstrokes, contrasting sharply with the darks and lights. How do you interpret this painting in terms of its formal elements? Curator: It's crucial to consider the tension created by the distortion of space and perspective. The table appears almost vertical, pushing the figures into the foreground, yet they recede into the atmospheric depths behind, defying a conventional spatial logic. This destabilizing effect invites scrutiny. Note Cézanne's application of paint, thick and directional, especially evident in the rendering of the figures' flesh and the drapery, it is almost sculptural. What relationship can you observe between the use of brushstroke and subject here? Editor: I guess the very physical application of paint creates a sensuousness in depicting flesh, but also adds a degree of frenzy that mirrors the debauchery depicted, a visual echo of chaos. Curator: Precisely! Consider too, the relationship between the solidity of the figures and the fluid background. Does this separation highlight the artifice of the painted surface itself? The foreground displays a greater saturation in colour, creating compositional weight and contrast against a lighter and seemingly ethereal rendering of background characters. In this work, the paint isn't just depicting an image, but seems to enact a visual logic unto itself. Editor: So it's less about what's depicted, and more about the way Cézanne uses paint and form to convey meaning. Curator: Exactly. Form becomes the primary language, a carrier of the painting’s central tension and dramatic core. Editor: That makes sense, it's definitely given me a new perspective on how to approach Cézanne’s work.