Daily Art Quote #12 (by Paul Cezanne)

pyrowngs (63)in #dailyartquote • 8 years ago (edited)

Daily Art Quote:

"A work of art which did not begin in emotion is not art."

~ Paul Cezanne

This seems like a fairly simple, straight-forward thought or quote, but the more I ponder it, the truer it seems, for me anyway. Thinking of my own art, and knowing that I need to feel inspired about what I'm painting in order to even want to paint, is in-keeping with this quote. I also know that being able to draw or "copy" something is completely different from creating art. When an artist is emotionally "moved" to paint and/or while they are painting, that emotion will be visible and evident in the painting, and can often be felt by the observers looking at the painting.

("The House and the Tree", 1874, Paul Cezanne)

So, here we have Paul Cezanne, one of the famous impressionist painters. Another painter who most people have heard of. I know I saw some of his paintings years ago at the Orsay Museum. However, although I thought I was fairly familiar with his impressionistic style, and I could sort of imagine what his paintings looked like, prior to researching for this post, I couldn't really remember any one specific painting of his that stood out in my memory, if that makes any sense. I would say, though, that when I thought of Cezanne, I imagined impressionist paintings of landscapes with somewhat loose brushstrokes. But after reading about his life at this website, and looking at the (over 500!) paintings that are at this website (in chronological order, mind you) - I feel like I can definitely recognize his style now. It is evident while scrolling through the paintings that his style definitely evolved over time (as most artist's styles do).

He is famous for his still-lives, landscapes, and portraits. Here is a selection of some of his landscapes and still-lives, that I find especially beautiful:

("The Turn in the Road at Auvers", 1873, by Paul Cezanne)

("Maison Maria with a View of Chateau Noir", 1895, by Paul Cezanne)

("Mont Sainte-Victoire", 1895, by Paul Cezanne)

("Flowers and Fruit", 1880, by Paul Cezanne)

("Still Life Post, Bottle, Cup and Fruit", 1871, by Paul Cezanne)

("Still Life with Skull", 1898, by Paul Cezanne)

("Apples and Oranges", 1900, by Paul Cezanne)

He also created many self-portraits. More than most artists do, it seems:

("Self-portrait", 1864, by Paul Cezanne)

("Self-portrait", 1866, by Paul Cezanne)

("Self-portrait in a Casquette", 1872, by Paul Cezanne)

("Self-portrait", 1875, by Paul Cezanne)

("Self-portrait", 1880, by Paul Cezanne)

("Self- Portrait", 1882, by Paul Cezanne)

("Self-portrait", 1882, by Paul Cezanne)

("Self-portrait with White Turbaned", 1880, by Paul Cezanne)

("Self- Portrait", 1885, by Paul Cezanne)

("Self- Portrait", 1887, by Paul Cezanne)

("Self- Portrait with Palette", 1890, by Paul Cezanne)

("Self- Portrait in a Felt Hat", 1894, by Paul Cezanne)

("Self- Portrait", 1895, by Paul Cezanne) - this one is my favorite one!

("Self- Portrait", 1896, by Paul Cezanne)

("Self- Portrait with Beret", 1900, by Paul Cezanne)

I love the way his self-portraits (and really ALL of his paintings) get increasingly softer (less harsh) and more colorful as he progressed. You can also see/feel his that his demeanor seems to soften and relax as he ages, too. Can you see that?

I also love how he does 2, 3, or more paintings of some of his subjects. Georgia O'Keeffe did this too, doing "studies" of some subjects. I hope to have more time to do studies of my own in the future. Up til now, when I paint something, I usually only do it once. I can see how doing a study (series of paintings or drawings, all of the same subject/object) would really help with observation skills, and even with helping loosen up my painting style. I urge you to go and scroll through all of his paintings. You have to click on the "More Images" button to load more every so often. Here's the link to view the paintings.

Have an Artful Day!!

Daily Art Quote #11 (by Gian Carlo Menotti)

Daily Art Quote #10 (by Saint Francis of Assisi)

Daily Art Quote #9 (by Vincent van Gogh)

Daily Art Quote #8 (by Luhraw)

Daily Art Quote #7 (by Edgar Degas)

Daily Art Quote #6 (by Bob Ross)

Daily Art Quote #5 (by Georgia O'Keeffe)

Daily Art Quote #4 (by Leonardo da Vinci)

Daily Art Quote #3 (by Winston Churchill)

Daily Art Quote #2 (by Louise Nevelson)

Daily Art Quote #1 (by Pablo Picasso)