Cezanne’s life comes alive in Aix-en-Provence

The painter, Paul Cezanne, was born and raised in Aix and spent most of his productive years here painting the town and its surroundings, most notably the local mountain, Mont Saint-Victoir. While there, Cézanne attended the law school of the University of Aix until he left for the art world of Paris.

When Cezanne was not in Aix, he lived and worked in nearby Estaque, a small village of fishermen on the shores of the Mediterranean, or in Gardanne, where he lived with his wife and child in 1885-86.

Before 1895, Cézanne exhibited twice with other Impressionists – in 1874 & 1877. In later years a few individual paintings were shown at various venues, until 1895, when a Parisian dealer gave him his first solo exhibition.

During his career, he became more interested in working from direct observation rather than from imagination in the Paris studio style, and gradually developed a light, airy painting style that we see in his work from Aix. In this mature landscape work there is the development of an almost architectural style of painting using flat brush strokes.

In spite of the increasing public recognition in Paris and the resulting financial success, Cézanne chose to work in increasing artistic isolation, in and around his beloved Aix-en-Provence, far from the hectic pace of Paris.

Pre-visit Cezanne sites online

Sites are listed below, with a gallery of his work during his life in Aix.

The City of Aix has done a fabulous job of making Cezanne’s life come alive for us by preserving his actual homes, studios, and outdoor painting sites.

Centrally located, the Aix-en-Provence Tourist Office is a great asset for us travelers. It is considered by many to be among the best in all of France. And lately they have expanded their discount visitor pass program. Here’s the link: The Aix-en-Provence City Pass for visitors.

Jas de Bouffan and its park

Jas de Bouffan and its park was the home & workplace of Cezanne for many years of his life after 1859. And it is open to the public for guided tours.

Most of the features built during his life are still there. Ironically, the gardens aren’t the opulent, showy kind like those of Monet, but rather modest, native, & organic. There is little color but the bright sky lighting filters down to the visitor through the canopy.

Later in life, Cezanne lost his house and had to move to another studio across Aix on Lauves Hill. It, too, is preserved by Aix Tourism as his still-life Atelier.

Mont Sainte-Victoire

Visit the tallest and most favorite subject of his life on his native soil. A relative of his had a house within view of Mont Sainte-Victoire at Estaque that inspired him to paint the mountain. A run of paintings of this mountain from 1880 to 1883 and others of Gardanne from 1885 to 1888 are sometimes known as his “Constructive Period”.

44 oils and 43 watercolors testify to his fascination with this mountain.

The Painters’ Field

The Painters’ Field near the workshop on Lauves Hill is set up for visitors facing the mountain he loved, with nine reproductions on lava of “Sainte-Victoire” for our perspective viewing.

Atelier de Cezanne

From 1902 until his death in 1906, Cezanne worked every morning in this workshop of light and silence on the Lauves road in Aix when he wasn’t working out in the field.

This is where many of his famous still life pictures were created. The ‘props’ for his works are still to be found on display, as he left them in his studio, or atelier.

A Cezanne’s still life appears to have just been brought in from the orchard glowing with Mediterranean sunshine.

His touch with still-life is at once decorative in design, is painted with thick, flat surfaces, yet maintains a weight reminiscent of earlier realist painters. Realist artists dealt less with the perfection of form of a subject, but rather with the portrayal of the subjects irregularities, suggesting real, direct observation by the artist.

The workshop has a bookshop, regularly hosts temporary exhibitions, and offers cultural events in season. Coffee breaks and refreshments are available in the ground floor shop on-site.

Aix Cezanne gallery

Cézanne was compelled to design from his imagination, due to a lack of available nude models in the small town. Like the landscapes, his portraits were drawn from that which was familiar, so that his wife, son, local peasants, village children, and even his art dealer are used as subjects.

The Aix City Guide to Cezanne described here also includes an online gallery to introduce some of his famous works like the “Large Bathers” shown below.

Bibemus Quarries

In 1895, he made a visit to the local Bibémus Quarries and also climbed Mont Sainte-Victoire. The labyrinthine landscape of the quarries must have struck a note, as he rented a cabin there in 1897 and painted extensively from it, including his favorite mountain, in basic geometric forms until 1905.

It was a turning point in art as we know it now.

The shapes created in embryonic three-dimensional form here are believed to have inspired the “Cubist” style made famous by Picasso beginning in 1906.

They are considered the 1st examples of cubism in any form..

In 2020, there is a guided tour of the Bibémus Quarries as a tour departing from the Aix Tourist Office that takes you right to his work area. It’s not a garden, but it is a historic perspective on 20th century art.

A retrospective of Cézanne’s paintings from these efforts of his last 3 years was later held at the Salon d’Automne of 1904-05 followed by two commemorative retrospectives after his death in 1907, where his own generation would see in these later works nothing more than impotence, unaware of his intentions.

He has been seen simultaneously as a classicist by those who chose to see in his work the imitation of nature, and as a revolutionary by those who saw in him a revolt against classical perspective.  But, the upcoming generation of artists like Picasso and Braque after 1905 will see in Cézanne, a greatness of vision.

Sources: Wikipedia: Arts, Tourism de Aix-en-Provence, WikiArt,