A Selection of Portraits from Cézanne’s Sketchbook

Paul Cezanne, The Artist's Son Leaning on his Elbow, c. 1887, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.c

Throughout his life, Paul Cézanne filled loose sheets of paper and sketchbooks with drawings. He drew to develop ideas for paintings and to quickly capture something of interest that caught his eye—a landscape, a work of art in the Louvre, or the head of a family member or friend. Most of Cézanne’s sketchbooks are no longer intact, as many were unbound long ago and the single sheets dispersed to collectors. The National Gallery of Art owns one of the few sketchbooks that remained intact. In conjunction with the exhibition Cézanne Portraits (March 25–July 8, 2018) this feature offers a selection of drawings of heads and faces from the sketchbook, primarily those of his wife Hortense Fiquet and their son Paul. The drawings date from the late 1870s, when Cézanne was in Paris, to the end of the 1890s, when he had returned to live in his native Aix-en-Provence. These quick sketches were not generally the result of formal portrait sessions, but were made at home, providing a glimpse of the intimacy of his family life.

The sketchbook can be viewed in its entirety here.

Several loose drawings from the Gallery’s collection (some originally from sketchbooks) are included in the slide show at the bottom of the page.

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, The Artist's Son Leaning on his Elbow, c. 1887, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.c

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Madame Cézanne, 1888/1891, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.h

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, A Head, a Cup, and a Bread Roll, 1891/1894, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.i

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Two Heads, 1888, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.k

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Madame Cézanne, 1886/1889, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.l

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Self-Portrait, c. 1895, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.m

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Head of a Young Woman, c. 1880, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.o

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Madame Cézanne, 1882/1887, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.p

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Madame Cézanne, 1897/1900, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.r

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Two Heads of Women, 1890/1894, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.t

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Woman Leaning Forward, 1890/1894, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.u

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Woman Leaning Forward, 1890/1894, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.v

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Madame Cézanne with her Head Lowered, 1893/1896, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.z

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, The Artist's Son Writing, c. 1887, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.aa

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, The Artist's Son, c. 1887, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.bb

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Head of a Boy, 1887/1889, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.cc

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Head of a Boy Seen from Behind, c. 1885, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.dd

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Woman Leaning Forward, 1888/1891, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.ff

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Head of the Artist's Son, 1888/1889, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.gg

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Hand and Shoulder of a Boy, c. 1885, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.kk

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Two Heads, 1890/1896, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.ll

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Victor Chocquet and an Angel for "The Apotheosis of Delacroix", 1878/1880, graphite and pen and brown ink with watercolor on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.uu

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Three Heads, One of Madame Cézanne, 1882/1885, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.zz

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, The Artist's Son Reading, c. 1887, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.bbb

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Figure Resting Head on Hand, c. 1889, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.ddd

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Man Bending Forward, 1883/1886, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.fff

Cézanne Sketchbook

Paul Cézanne, Studies Including Madame Cézanne, 1884/1887, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of the National Gallery of Art, 1992.51.9.nnn

More Portrait Sketches by Cézanne from the National Gallery of Art Permanent Collection

Cézanne Portrait Sketches

Paul Cézanne, Father of the Artist [verso], c. 1865/1870, graphite on wove paper, The Armand Hammer Collection, 1991.217.26.b

Cézanne Portrait Sketches

Paul Cezanne, Self-Portrait [recto], c. 1880/1882, graphite on wove paper (sketchbook page), Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, 1985.64.85.a

Cézanne Portrait Sketches

Paul Cezanne, The Artist's Father and Objects on a Mantel [verso], 1877/1881, graphite on wove paper (sketchbook page), Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, 1985.64.85.b

Cézanne Portrait Sketches

Paul Cezanne, Bust of Madame Cezanne [verso], 1884/1885, graphite, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, 1985.64.83.b

Cézanne Portrait Sketches

Paul Cezanne, Self-Portrait [recto], 1897/1900, graphite on wove paper, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon, 1995.47.27.a