Still Life with Blue Pot

Paul Cézanne

about 1900–1906

Watercolor over graphite, Watercolor, Graphite

J. Paul Getty Museum

A still life painting depicts a blue pot, a white pitcher, and several apples arranged on a draped cloth. The background is a muted wash of yellow and beige. The still life was a principal theme throughout Paul Cézanne's artistic career. Using a repertoire of everyday objects such as fruit, jugs, bottles, and plates, he experimented with relationships of form, color, and pattern. Although the groupings seem casual, Cézanne is known to have taken great care with the arrangement, sometimes spending hours positioning the objects. In this brightly colored watercolor, Cézanne's monumental conception of form is evident: the jug, the two pots, one white, one blue, and the seven apples assume a physical presence beyond normal perception of their existence. Using small patches of color laid next