Paul Cézanne - The card players 1896
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The card players 1896
49x58cm oil/canvas
Musee d'Orsay, Paris, France
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From Musee d'Orsay, Paris:
Cézanne had certainly seen The Cardplayers, attributed to the Le Nain brothers, at the museum in Aix-en-Provence, his home town. During the 1890s, the artist tackled this theme of Caravaggian inspiration on many occasions, and gave an exceptional gravity to the confrontation. Cézanne substitutes subtle gestures and glances with bulky figures and characters in silent concentration.
The bottle, with the light playing on it, forms the central axis of the composition. It separates the space into two symmetrical areas, accentuating the opposition of the players. The latters are allegedly peasants Cézanne used to see at his father's property in Jas de Bouffan, on the outskirts of Aix. The man smoking the pipe has been identified as "père Alexandre", the gardener there.