National Gallery of Art :: The Collection :: House of Père Lacroix
  • Overview
  • Inscription
  • Provenance
  • Exhibition History
  • Bibliography

Overview

To brighten Cézanne's dark palette knife, his friend Camille Pissarro told him, "Never paint except with the three primary colors. . . . " The bright hues and quickly worked brushstrokes reveal here the effect of Pissarro's influence. Greens and yellows contrast in the foreground, and multihued vertical drags of the brush re–create watery reflections. Cool shadows contrast with the orange of a tiled roof. Light emphasizes the blond planes of the building, which is shaded with blues, greens, and mauves, and where broad strokes and heavier paint convey texture.

The elaborate signature and date are unusual in Cézanne's work. Perhaps he intended it for a patron or a public exhibition—at the urging of Pissarro, three of his works were included in the first impressionist show. In 1873 Cézanne moved to the village of Auvers, near Paris, where he painted this landscape. It was near Pissarro's home, and the two of them often painted side by side during 1873 and 1874. Auvers was also home to Dr. Gachet, a collector who would later care for the despairing Van Gogh. Cézanne may have hoped Gachet would purchase his work, which was ignored by the public. In the 1880s Cézanne returned to Provence in the south of France, and after inheriting his father's large estate in 1886, largely abandoned efforts to promote his work. He did not gain commercial success until he was in his 50s.

Inscription

lower left: P. Cezanne 73.

Marks and Labels

null

Provenance

(Ambroise Vollard [1867-1939], Paris). (Bernheim-Jeune, Paris). Alphonse Kann [1870-1948], Saint Germain-en-Laye. Auguste Pellerin [1852-1929], Paris.[1] (Durand-Ruel, New York); sold 27 November 1937 to Chester Dale [1882-1962], New York;[2] bequest 1963 to NGA.

[1]This painting was not included in the 1926 Pellerin sale held in Paris. At his death in 1929 Pellerin's collection was inherited by his son and daughter, Jean-Victor Pellerin and Mme Réne Lecomte.

[2]According to Chester Dale papers in NGA curatorial files.

Exhibition History

1965
The Chester Dale Bequest, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1965, unnumbered checklist.
2010
From Impressionism to Modernism: The Chester Dale Collection, National Gallery of Art, January 2010-January 2012, unnumbered catalogue, repro.

Bibliography

1936
Venturi, Lionello. Cezanne, son art, son oeuvre.Paris: Paul Rosenberg, 1936.
1942
French Paintings from the Chester Dale Collection. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1942: 67, repro.
1944
French Paintings from the Chester Dale Collection. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1944: 67, repro.
1953
French Paintings from the Chester Dale Collection. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1953: 77, repro.
1957
Shapley, Fern Rusk. Comparisons in Art: A Companion to the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC. London, 1957 (reprinted 1959): pl. 160
1962
Cairns, Huntington, and John Walker, eds., Treasures from the National Gallery of Art, New York, 1962: 160, color repro.
1963
Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.. New York, 1963 (reprinted 1964 in French, German, and Spanish): 272, repro.
1965
Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century Paintings & Sculpture of the French School in the Chester Dale Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1965: 116, repro.
1965
Summary Catalogue of European Paintings and Sculpture. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1965: 25
1968
European Paintings and Sculpture, Illustrations. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1968: 18, repro.
1970
Orienti 1970, no.142.
1975
European Paintings: An Illustrated Summary Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1975: 60, repro.
1984
Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington. Rev. ed. New York, 1984: 504, no. 750, color repro.
1985
European Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1985: 80, repro.
1996
Rewald, John. The Paintings of Paul Cézanne: a catalogue raisonné. 2 vols. New York, 1996:no. 201, repro.
1997
Kelder, Diane. The Great Book of French Impressionism, 1997, no. 138, repro.
1998
Classic Cézanne. Exh. cat. Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sidney, 1998: 48, fig. 19.

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