Cézanne's Radical Approach to the Still Life

The still-life is star for Paul Cézanne, who, while not the first artist to paint a still life, was the first to elevate everyday objects to be the primary subject. Nature morte; pommes et poires, was made in the late 1880s at the height of the artist’s career, when he was living in Provence and creating his most celebrated works. Simple in composition and striking in its modernity, this painting is a beautiful and exciting example of Cezanne doing what he did best– exalting the quotidian and giving the world a new way to examine the natural world.