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A relationship

Much of the speculation about Paul Cézanne's relationship with his wife Marie-Hortense Fiquet stems from the 20 or so "portraits of Madame Cézanne". His wife, stiff and expressionless, looks like an apple on a still life table.

Because of these images, most critics would say that Cézanne's relationship with his wife was aloof.

Madame Cézanne in a red armchair Cézanne 1877

The fact is that it is not easy to model at work, let alone for Cézanne.

He was no less exacting in his depiction of his subjects than he was in his own creations. She needs to remain still for hours on end, even in her demeanour - Hortense sits upright in a sofa one afternoon or for days on end, with nothing else to do, and as time passes and she lets go to a distant place, her expression grows more subdued, her movements gradually dull, and eventually, it seems understandable that a seemingly aloof face remains in the picture.

Portrait of Madame Cézanne Cézanne 1886

There is a wonderful attraction to the state of Madame Cézanne, and before we explore it further, let's get to know the other women who appear on Cézanne's canvases.

Group women, another category of woman that Cézanne depicted from time to time. They are mostly unclothed, their faces blurred and in the classic poses of classical paintings, clearly a way for Cézanne to learn from and challenge classical painting and, more importantly, a subject that was clearly influenced by the 'culture of chaos' in war-torn France.

The Bathers Cézanne 1899

In the second half of the 19th century, the Second French Empire under Napoleon Bonaparte's nephew, Louis Napoleon, was considered to be in a state of decline. The French, at this time, indulged in a culture of drink and sex, which led to a decline in the country's fertility rate, an epidemic of prostitution and widespread disease.

Prostitutes were common on the streets of Paris, and it was common to enter into some sort of unspeakable practical subject with them, and it was only logical that their image became an extremely important character in French art and literature. Édouard Manet and the Impressionists all practised and depicted them as protagonists, and Seurat used the metaphor of the fishing lady in his famous Sunday Afternoon on the Island of the Big Bowl.

Sunday Afternoon on the Island of the Big Bowl, partial Seurat 1886

Cézanne was an exception. The blurred images of women in his paintings do not come from personal practice, but from imagination.

Cézanne always had a fear of nude female models. This was written about by his close friend Émile Zola in his novel The Masterpiece, based on Cézanne - a character in the novel, a painter who is afraid of physical contact with women and who, in his struggle to repeatedly depict the mysterious women of his imagination, chooses to commit suicide.

It was difficult for Cézanne to accept such a description and fiction, and shortly after receiving a new work from Zola, their friendship came to an end.

Portrait of Madame Cézanne Cézanne 1887

At this point, another possibility emerges when we look back at the aloof 'Madame Cézanne'.

Cézanne unleashed his endless imagination on a group of women, leaving the more rational and objective side of the painting to 'Madame Cézanne'. It may be that he deliberately abandoned his emotions and painted only the form of his wife as a way of presenting his artistic vision.

But it is interesting to note that the 'Madame Cézann

Portrait of Madame Cézanne Cézanne 1887

This small work, formerly in the Henri Matisse collection, has an unusual thinness of paint, with pure blocks of colour and brushstrokes for modelling purposes, but at the same time gives Madame Cézanne a delicate femininity that is unprecedented.

Is this the true temperament of Madame Cézanne? We do not know. But it was the way she worked that fascinated Matisse.

Portrait of Madame Cézanne on a yellow chair Cézanne 1890

The character of Madame Cézanne is best exemplified by her Portrait of Madame Cézanne in the Garden, painted in 1891.

Probably one of the works Cézanne completed in a short space of time, it shows Hortense for the first time with a graceful sensitivity, as vivid as the swift sweep of her brushstrokes, as she looks to Cézanne and to her husband with a willingness to communicate in her eyes.

Portrait of Madame Cézanne in the garden Cézanne 1891

At the age of 30, Cézanne met his future wife Hortense, and they lived a simple life, avoiding the demanding old Cézanne. Years later, the two were often separated, Cézanne obsessed with his art, often going out to sketch, trying to push the boundaries of modern painting, and Hortense at home, looking after the family and the children. But in any case, she was a staunch supporter of Cézanne's artistic journey.

Cézanne, a loner, also failed to integrate into the Parisian painting community. With a strong southern accent, he occasionally visited Parisian cafés with a strong art scene, hiding in a corner by himself, and only speaking up when he had to rebut someone's point of view. More often than not, he brings a sense of surprise.

Claude Monet recalls that Cézanne once approached the elegant Manet, the centre of the party, at the café and exclaimed: "I'm not here to shake your hand, Monsieur Manet, I haven't washed my hands for a week.

And among all the surprises, there must have been the unique work of Cézanne and the "Madame Cézanne" who inspired the likes of Matisse and Picasso.

Article source: LCA

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