Jean-Claude Lebensztejn's Cézanne Studies: Beyond the Apples

Jean-Claude Lebensztejn's 'Etudes cézaniennes', published by Flammarion, reexamines Paul Cézanne's work through the lens of fantasy and temperament, moving beyond the iconic apples to what he calls 'Cézanne's balls'. Lebensztejn argues that Cézanne's distinction from the Impressionists, including his teacher Pissarro, lies in his active construction of perception, fusing observation, memory, imagination, and mental construction with equal intensity. The author challenges the binary of 'true' versus 'young' Cézanne, proposing a return to the painter's early vehemence. Described as a 'refined savage' by Bataille, Cézanne invents his own rules, works not for finished paintings but for discovery, and treats study as an end in itself—a protest against the masterpiece and established society. His nature is not idealized; a Leda drawing derives mythology from a 'Champagne nana' label, blurring high and low. Lebensztejn celebrates Cézanne as a master of discontinuous harmony, attentive to both overall composition and the detail of execution, evoking nature in formation. The review by Evence Verdier appears in artpress.