This painting is called ‘still life with a basket of apples’. It was made between 1890 and 1894, this means it took Cezanne 4 years to produce; it is 23 3/8 by 31 inches. The artwork is of some apples in a basket and a bottle of wine. This is a scene that is not often come across as Cezanne has chosen his objects carefully so that the colours reflect off of the white cloth, even the folds have been chosen specifically to fit the piece. This piece of work was an observation painting as Cezanne set up his compositions according to his style.
I think this is an observational painting because there is a lot of attention to detail that would not be there if it was painted from imagination. From the moment that you look at it, you know what it is as it is representational. In this composition, we can see Cezannes painting technique is clearly recognisable, as it is different from many other artists, his work is characterised by his brush strokes; these can sometimes be repetitive , sensitive or exploratory depending on what Cezanne is painting. He uses a blocky form which gives the piece uniqueness and shows his signature style.
The simple, natural colours show his emotions as being quite depressed and sad at this period of time. He uses a couple of shades of each colour and then builds on top. This is a painting that has been created based on his unique painting techniques, to define shadows, blend tone and colour. Cezanne has layered the different colours to show the overlay of the paints. Cezanne has used harmonious colours in the apples, however he has also set up his piece by using complimentary colours of red and green in his basket by using these colours, you can see a separation in the piece; however it is unnoticeable as the colours mix well.
