The Large Bathers (Les Baigneurs) (1898)
Original title: The Large Bathers (Les Baigneurs)
kurzbeschreibung
Paul Cézanne's 1898 color lithograph "Die großen Badenden" (Les Baigneurs) shows a group of people in a landscape. The figures are casually distributed, without a fixed order. The print belongs to Cézanne's later engagement with the bather motif.
Description
In the foreground, a woman lies on her back, while a second stands with her back to the viewer. A third person sits on the ground, and further back two figures converse. Trees and a cloudy sky frame the scene. Grey and brown tones dominate, and the light is soft and diffuse, creating a calm mood. The arrangement of the figures feels incidental and unstudied.
Context
Cézanne varied the bather theme in several oil paintings and prints. The 1898 lithograph is part of a group of works devoted to this subject. At that time he often worked with the printer Ambroise Vollard, who also published this print. The bather motif runs as a central theme through Cézanne's late work, which he constantly reworked.
Impact
A quiet, almost meditative mood emanates from the lithograph, carried by the muted colors and diffuse light. The loosely distributed figures appear natural and unforced, which gives the print liveliness. Because only a few tones are used, the pictorial structure stands out more clearly.
Technique
For this color lithograph, Cézanne worked with several stones or plates, one for each color. In this way he managed to translate the colorfulness characteristic of his painting into print. The process allows fine transitions and a matte surface reminiscent of his paintings.
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Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)