Paul Cézanne And His Eternal Feminine

Professor Runyen
Art 100
10/17/13
Paul Cézanne and His Eternal Feminine
For post-impressionist artist Paul Cézanne, the nude was a central role in his career, however, for an artist who usually drew from life, he happened to be uncomfortable with naked models and was even quoted to say, “Woman models frighten me.” (Getty) Looking at Cézanne’s 17” x 20 7/8” oil on canvas The Eternal Feminine from 1877, “frighten” does not seem to be the only affect woman have on him.
My boyfriend and I rushed into the Getty Center with excited curiosity, wondering about what kind of artwork we would find. We only had an hour to explore the museum and find a piece that I liked enough to want to write about. When we came across this painting in particular,
During the year this work was created Cézanne began to use parallel diagonal strokes (Getty). He would lay one short and thick stroke next to the other as compared to the so many chisel marks on a sculpture (NY Times). This technique has been described as “multiplicity of successfully probed sensations” as it gives the painting the appearance of at once timeless and in flux (NY Times). In The Eternal Feminine in particular, urgently hatched diagonal brush strokes assist in leading the eye to the central figure (Getty). What he also does to lead your eye to his subject is his use of organic shapes. Everything from the placement of the men surrounding this woman, to the direction and angles of the objects depicted (such as the musicians trumpets and the artists canvas), Cézanne intentionally positioned them in a way to imply diagonal lines that guide the viewers’ attention to the center. Cézanne lastly incorporate a dark-like feeling with his choice of color harmony, also creating a mood that really unifies this piece. He chooses to use analogous hues of blue and green for the majority of this piece which creates a somewhat depressing or sad mood, as does his subjects. Cézanne also adds small pieces of red and yellow which are complimented by the green and blue, causing them to stand out. He also paints the woman, the Eternal Feminine, in such an intense tint of blue she is
Around this time Cézanne began to withdraw himself from his impressionist colleagues and instead isolated himself and his work at home, partially due to the disappointing responses his art continuously received (Biography). No one is sure of the meaning behind this painting but due to the title, the subject, the mood and all else that brings thus artwork together, Cézanne seems to send a clear message of his impression of women. The Eternal Feminine seems to depict the representation that woman are to be feared, yearned for, desired and are of eternally