Landscape 1866

Paul Cézanne painted this ‘Landscape’ on canvas sometime during his career which spanned much of the 19th century. As a painter working in France during a period of significant social and political change, including the rise of industrialization and the aftermath of the French Revolution, Cézanne, like many artists, sought to capture the essence of modern life and the changing relationship between humanity and nature. This landscape, with its loose brushstrokes and focus on the formal elements of shape and color, represents a departure from traditional landscape painting. What does it mean to depict the world around us? Is it an attempt to capture the world as is or is it an expression of an inner state? Cézanne was less interested in depicting a scene realistically and more interested in exploring his subjective experience of the world through color and form. There is a stillness in this landscape, an invitation to consider the emotional and personal dimensions of our relationship to the natural world. Cézanne invites us to contemplate our place within the landscape.