Seated Bather 1882 - 1885

Paul Cézanne made this graphite drawing, Seated Bather, using paper and pencil. Rather than a traditional painting on canvas, Cézanne chose the immediacy of drawing, valuing the line as a way to capture form and volume. The soft, grey quality of the graphite lends the figures a sense of weight and presence. The quick, repetitive strokes create texture and shadow, giving the bather's bodies a sculptural quality. It's fascinating how Cézanne coaxes depth and light from such simple materials, achieving an understated, but potent, sense of monumentality. The choice of pencil on paper is significant, it allows for the possibility of studies and reproductions, and democratizes art making. By focusing on the fundamentals of drawing, Cézanne invites us to appreciate the material's inherent qualities and the artist’s direct engagement with the process of creation. This challenges the traditional hierarchy that favors painting, and highlights the inherent value found in process, labor, and materiality.