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Antoine Dominique Sauveur Aubert (born 1817), the Artist's Uncle, as a Monk

Original title: Antoine Dominique Sauveur Aubert (born 1817), the Artist's Uncle, as a Monk

Artist

Paul Cézanne

Date

1866

Medium

Oil on canvas

Dimensions

25 5/8 x 21 1/2 in. (65.1 x 54.6 cm)

Credit line

The Walter H. and Leonore Annenberg Collection, Gift of Walter H. and Leonore Annenberg, 1993, Bequest of Walter H. Annenberg, 2002

kurzbeschreibung

In 1866 Paul Cézanne painted a portrait of his uncle Antoine Dominique Sauveur Aubert, who appears here as a monk. The oil on canvas shows the relative in a white habit with blue collar trim, seen from the front. It is one of the early testaments in which Cézanne engaged with the genre of portraiture.

Description

Your gaze is drawn at once to the serious, introspective face, turned slightly to the left. Antoine Dominique Sauveur Aubert wears a white garment with a blue collar and a hood that recalls a monk's cowl. His hands lie folded in his lap. A dark, neutral ground surrounds the figure and makes it stand out clearly. White, blue and grey dominate the colouring, while brown quietly resonates in the hands and the hood.

Context

The portrait was made in 1866, when Cézanne still adhered closely to the tradition of portraiture but was already trying out his own paths. His uncle Antoine Dominique Sauveur Aubert, a banker by profession, modelled for him several times. The role of the monk was a common device at the time to give the sitter an idealized or allegorical note. The picture falls in the period before Cézanne's later turn to Impressionism, yet already here a loosened brushwork emerges.

Impact

The calm posture and the serious facial expression lend the portrait a dignified, thoughtful mood. Because the background remains dark and neutral, all attention is directed to the figure and its fine facial features. The visible handling of paint and the restrained colour gradations create a quiet, almost meditative atmosphere.

Technique

Executed in oil on canvas, the painting shows a distinctly structured, pastose application of paint. The colour is applied in layers, giving the surface a lively texture. The realistic style is complemented by impressionistic elements in the colouring and the loose brushwork.

AI-generated description text

Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)