Carafe Et Bol 

Paul Cézanne made this watercolor and pencil painting, "Carafe Et Bol," using paper, pigment, and graphite. Cézanne's approach to watercolor is remarkable. It feels like an exercise in pure seeing, reducing forms to their bare essentials. The carafe and bowl are rendered with almost scientific detachment, yet the translucent quality of the watercolor gives the image a vibrancy that belies its simplicity. The use of pencil underdrawing adds another layer of texture, suggesting the artist's process of observation and refinement. In Cézanne's era, both the carafe and the bowl represented domestic rituals of eating and drinking. Cézanne was able to immortalize these everyday objects, elevating them to the level of art. In doing so, he invites us to consider the beauty inherent in the mundane. It also prompts reflection on the labor and craft involved in the production of these objects. By focusing on the materiality and construction of ordinary things, Cézanne challenged the traditional hierarchies of art, making us reconsider the boundaries between the fine arts and the applied arts.