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Mont Sainte-Victoire and the Viaduct of the Arc River Valley

1882–85
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 826

The distinctive silhouette of Mont Saint-Victoire rises above the Arc River valley near the town of Aix. To paint this scene, Cézanne stood close to Montbriand, his sister’s property, at the top of the hill just behind her house; the wall of the neighboring farmhouse is barely visible. Cézanne sought to reveal the inner geometry of nature, "to make of Impressionism something solid and durable, like the art of museums." Indeed the railroad viaduct that cuts through this pastoral scene is evocative of a Roman aqueduct, recalling paintings by Nicolas Poussin.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Mont Sainte-Victoire and the Viaduct of the Arc River Valley
  • Artist: Paul Cézanne (French, Aix-en-Provence 1839–1906 Aix-en-Provence)
  • Date: 1882–85
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 25 3/4 x 32 1/8 in. (65.4 x 81.6 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: H. O. Havemeyer Collection, Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929
  • Object Number: 29.100.64
  • Curatorial Department: European Paintings

Audio

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The Large Bathers (Les Baigneurs), Paul Cézanne French, Color lithograph on wove paper; first state of two
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Portrait of Guillaumin with a Hanging Man, Paul Cézanne French, Etching and drypoint; second state of two (restrike)
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Paul Cézanne
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Exhibition Announcement and Catalogue for a Cézanne show at the Galerie Vollard (May 9–June 10, 1898), Paul Cézanne French, Relief print
Exhibition Announcement and Catalogue for a Cézanne show at the Galerie Vollard (May 9–June 10, 1898)
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Bathers (recto); Still Life (verso), Paul Cézanne French, Watercolor over graphite (recto); watercolor (verso)
Bathers (recto); Still Life (verso)
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