Bathers by Paul Cézanne (Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC)

Bathers by Paul Cézanne is a reinterpreting of a historical tradition of painting nude figures in the landscape by famous artists such as Titian and Poussin. Historically artists took inspiration from classical myths. Cézanne, however, was not depicting a mythological story. He was more concerned with the harmony of the figures to the landscape. When this painting was exhibited in 1907, it became an inspiration for Picasso, Matisse, and other artists who were exploring and developing new art movements. ‘Bathers’ is reminiscent of earlier artist’s works, and comparisons can be made with more modern works such as Picasso’s Les Demoiselles d’Avignon.

This painting is one in a series of Bather paintings created by Cézanne towards the end of his life. With each successive version of the Bathers, Cézanne moved further away from the traditional paintings, intentionally creating artworks for an audience more interested in new forms of art. Cézanne wanted to pave the way for future artists to disregard current trends, and he focused on painting pieces that imbued a timeless quality to his work. The abstract nude forms are in symmetry to the triangular and rounded patterns of the trees reminiscent of landscapes and still-life paintings. Cézanne’s vision was:

“to make of Impressionism an art as solid as that of the museums.”

Paul Cézanne

Paul Cézanne was a Post-Impressionist painter who laid the foundations in the transition from the 19th-century Impressionism to the 20th century’s Cubism. Both Matisse and Picasso have remarked that Cézanne “is the father of us all.” Cézanne’s art is characterized by repetitive, exploratory small brushstrokes that build up to form complex color fields, demonstrating his intense study of his subjects.

Bathers (Baigneuses)

Title: Bathers
French: Baigneuses
Artist: Paul Cézanne
Year: 1874 until 1875
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions Height: 38.1 cm (15 in); Width: 46 cm (18.1 in)
Museum: Metropolitan Museum of Art

Paul Cézanne

Name: Paul Cézanne
Born: 1839 – Aix-en-Provence, France
Died: 1906 (aged 67) – Aix-en-Provence, France
Nationality: French
Movement: Post-Impressionism
Notable works:
- The Card Players (Barnes Foundation)
- The Card Players (Courtauld Gallery)
- The Card Players (MET)
- Madame Cézanne in the Conservatory
- Madame Cézanne in a Red Dress
- Madame Cézanne in a Red Armchair
- Bathers (The National Gallery, London)
- Bathers (The National Gallery, London)
- The Large Bathers (Philadelphia Museum of Art)
- Bathers by Paul Cézanne (Art Institute of Chicago)
- Bathers by Paul Cézanne (Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC)

Explore the Metropolitan Museum of Art

MET European Paintings Collection

“Pygmalion and Galatea” by Jean-Léon
“Saint Jerome as Scholar” by El Greco
“Portrait of Juan de Pareja” by Diego Velázquez
“Camille Monet on a Garden Bench” by Claude Monet
“View of Toledo” by El Greco
“The Musicians” by Caravaggio
“The Death of Socrates” by Jacques-Louis David
“The Harvesters” by Pieter Bruegel the Elder
“Young Woman Drawing” by Marie-Denise Villers
“The Grand Canal, Venice” by J. M. W. Turner
“The Houses of Parliament (Effect of Fog)” by Claude Monet
“Madame Cézanne in a Red Dress” by Paul Cézanne

MET Modern and Contemporary Art Collection

“Reclining Nude” by Amedeo Modigliani
“Improvisation 27 (Garden of Love II)” by Wassily Kandinsky
“Jeanne Hébuterne” by Amedeo Modigliani
“The Card Players” by Paul Cézanne
“Bathers” by Paul Cézanne

MET Greek and Roman Art Collection

Statue of a Kouros
Amathus Sarcophagus
Mycenaean Terracotta Female Figures

MET Egyptian Art Collection

The Temple of Dendur
The Sphinx of Hatshepsut
William the Faience Hippopotamus

MET Asian Art Collection

Luohan – Yixian Glazed Ceramic Sculpture
Pillow with Landscape Scenes – Zhang Family Workshop
Jar with Dragon

MET Ancient Near Eastern Art Collection

Sumerian Standing Male Worshiper
Head of a Beardless Royal Attendant – Eunuch
Human-Headed Winged Bull (Lamassu)

MET American Wing Collection

“Washington Crossing the Delaware” by Emanuel Leutze
“Portrait of Madame X” by John Singer Sargent
“Mother and Child” by Mary Cassatt
“Fur Traders Descending the Missouri” by George Caleb Bingham
“The Gulf Stream” by Winslow Homer

MET Islamic Art Collection

Blue Qur’an
Marble Jar of Zayn al-Din Yahya Al-Ustadar
The Damascus Room

MET Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas Collection

Benin Ivory Mask
African Face Mask – Kpeliye’e
Sican Funerary Mask – Peru
Ceremonial Axe – Papua New Guinea

MET European Sculpture and Decorative Arts Collection

“Hercules the Archer” by Antoine Bourdelle
“Orpheus and Eurydice” by Auguste Rodin
“Perseus with the Head of Medusa” by Antonio Canova

MET Medieval Art Collection

“The Last Supper” by Ugolino di Nerio
Plaque with the Journey to Emmaus and Noli Me Tangere
Doorway from the Church of San Nicolò, San Gemini

MET Drawings and Prints Collection

Album of Tournaments and Parades in Nuremberg
“Canvassing for Votes” by William Hogarth
“Christ and the Woman of Samaria” by Rembrandt

MET Costume Institute Collection

Bodice
Cardinal Cape
Doublet

MET Arms and Armor Collection

Blade and Mounting for a Sword (Katana)
Double-Barreled Flintlock Shotgun

MET Photograph Collection

Loie Fuller Dancing
Sala Delle Statue, Vatican
Gardner’s Photographic Sketchbook of the War

MET Musical Instrument Collection

Ming-Dynasty Pipa
Grand Piano
Bass Fluegel Horn in B-flat

Explore the MET

The MET Cloisters
Met Breuer
Metropolitan Museum of Art – MET

Reflections

What does this painting tell us about how Cézanne viewed art?
Which version of the ‘Bathers’ paintings is your favorite?
Did Cézanne achieve his vision of making “Impressionism an art as solid as that of the museums”?

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“I want to make of Impressionism an art as solid as that of the museums.”
– Paul Cézanne

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Photo Credit: Paul Cézanne [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons

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