199 Quotes by Paul Cezanne

If I were called upon to define briefly the word Art, I should call it the reproduction of what the senses preceive in nature, seen through the veil of the soul.

I’ll always be grateful to the public of intelligent amateurs.

One is neither too scrupulous nor too sincere nor too submissive to nature; but one is more or less master of one’s model, and, above all, of the means of expression.

Everything vanishes, falls apart, doesn’t it? Nature is always the same but nothing in her that appears to us lasts. Our art must render the thrill of her permanence, along with her elements, the appearance of all her changes. It must give us a taste of her Eternity.

Everything is about to disappear. You’ve got to hurry up if you still want to see things.

If you see a red tree, paint it bright red.

Don’t be an art critic. Paint. There lies salvation.

Time and reflection change the sight little by little ’till we come to understand.

The artist must scorn all judgment that is not based on an intelligent observation of character. He must beware of the literary spirit which so often causes a painting to deviate from its true path – the concrete study of nature – to lose itself all too long in intangible speculations.