Cezanne, how a classic is born

Paul Cézanne is not just one of the great Masters of modern painting. He is an artist who, for over a century, has continued to be reinterpreted, discussed, and rediscovered by generations of painters. This is the perspective behind the exhibition dedicated to the Master of Aix-en-Provence, a project that not only recounts his work but also reconstructs his extraordinary legacy through the eyes of the artists who, from his time to the present day, have made him an essential point of reference. The exhibition offers an original approach: it not only explores who Cézanne was, but above all, the Cézanne he has been seen, understood, and assimilated throughout history. The exhibition traces the evolution of his critical and collector success, from the 1880s, when the artist lived almost in seclusion in Aix-en-Provence and many wondered whether he even existed, to the birth of the "Cézanne myth," consecrated in the twentieth century as the founding father of modern painting. The exhibition reconstructs the decisive moments of this affirmation. A key role is played by the early networks of collectors and artists who acquired his works through the dealer Père Tanguy, after Cézanne had ceased to exhibit regularly. This is followed by the historic exhibitions organized by Ambroise Vollard between 1895 and 1901, the crucial entry of two paintings into the collections of the Musée du Luxembourg thanks to the Caillebotte bequest, and, subsequently, the major retrospectives at the Salon d'Automne and the first international exhibitions that helped definitively establish his fame. It is precisely through these developments that Cézanne became a point of reference for the European avant-garde of the early twentieth century. The exhibition, however, highlights how his influence cannot be reduced solely to his relationship with Impressionism or the birth of Cubism. The exhibition offers a more nuanced reinterpretation, placing the painter within Symbolist culture as well. It recalls, for example, the homage Maurice Denis paid to him as early as 1900, and demonstrates how his work has generated diverse and often conflicting interpretations. This diversity of readings is the heart of the exhibition. Cézanne emerges as a continually reinterpreted artist, whose language has fueled many diverse paths: from the historical avant-gardes to post-World War II research, from lyrical abstraction to Hard-Edge painting, all the way to the developments of contemporary art and the reflections of Postmodernism. More than a singular model, Cézanne thus appears as an inexhaustible laboratory of ideas, capable of offering new interpretations each time. The exhibition alternates the reconstruction of famous historical installations with direct comparisons of works from different eras, creating an ongoing dialogue between the French Master and the artists who inherited his legacy. A complex story emerges, in which Cezanne's language continues to transform without ever losing its original strength.