The Bather

Paul Cezanne is among the most renowned French painters of the 18th century. He was known for his intriguing pictures, but this particular painting was different. He drew an image of a young boy who is mid-step into a water body.

The boy is naked, save for his underwear. Hands akimbo, the young boy seems to be deep in thought, perhaps debating whether he should go on and walk deeper into the water or stay where he is. He has short dark hair, that covers the tip of his forehead. In the background, the painter creates an unimpressive view of a small hill. Some greenery is also visible but in small portions. With no bathing supplies and no intention of removing the small piece of clothing that covers his secret parts, the boy can be considered to have used the time to wallow in his thoughts. Paul Cezanne used grey paint in most of the painting, but a dash of light brown and green create a much-needed contrast.

He draws on a canvas using oil paints. The strokes are rather loose and somewhat unintentional. The image itself seems a little blurry. There is no vivid contrast between the person and his surroundings. Unlike other paintings by Paul Cezanne, this one does not serve any significant purpose. Other painters and art analysts believe that this image was used as inspiration to come up with fresh ideas for his subsequent paintings.

This man was fond of oil painting, now that he left behind over 900 canvas oil paintings. However, he also tried his luck in water colours and there are over 400 images of this kind to show for it. Paul probably received applause for his other paintings, especially on the basket of apples, the boy in the red vest, the pyramid of skulls, the card player series, and the large bathers. In these images, the man used a variety of strokes and contrasting colours to create vivid images, and convey a message. With over 1500 oil and water colour paintings to his name, Paul Cezanne can be termed as one successful painter of his day.

This painter was greatly inspired by Pissarro. He borrowed plenty of ideas from him, more so his loose air style. And while most people believed that he was an impressionist, he was not tied down to any particular painting style. However, his paintings were predominantly modern. He believed in painting the best he could, and being tied down to one particular style was not part of his beliefs. If he ascribed to this school of thought, then Paul would never have drawn as many paintings as he did.