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The Brook
by Paul Cezanne
About the Artwork
Although Cezanne exhibited twice with the Impressionists, he rejected his friends’ goals of capturing the fleeting effects of light and atmosphere in their art. Instead, he sought to create balance among the forms and colors in his compositions. This painting depicts the valley of the Arc River that runs southeast of Cezanne’s home in Aix-en-Provence. Throughout the composition, he juxtaposed strokes of different hues, describing the leaves, branches, and the stream with color rather than drawing the outlines of forms.
Provenance
Ambroise Vollard [1866-1939], Paris, France Walther Halvorsen [1887-1972]. Oslo, Norway (Galerie Brummer, Paris, France/New York, NY) by 1928: (Galerie Heinemann, Munich, Germany, by 1928, sold to a Private Collection) Private Collection, Vienna, Austria Robert Treat Paine, Jr., Boston, MA by 1939: Thomas Metcalf, Boston, MA (Knoedler Galleries, New York, NY) 1945: (Sam Salz, New York, NY, March 12, 1945, sold to Leonard C. Hanna, Jr.) 1945-1958: Leonard C. Hanna, Jr. [1889-1957], Cleveland, OH, bequeathed to the Cleveland Museum of Art 1958-: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Exhibition history
Highlights of the 19th Century. Akron Art Museum, Akron, OH (organizer) (March 3-31, 1959). Masterpiece of the Month. Akron Art Museum (organizer) (April 2-26, 1959). セザンヌ展 (Paul Cezanne Exhibition). National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan (organizer) (March 29-May 25, 1974); Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art, Kyoto, Japan (June 1-July 17, 1974); Fukuoka Art Museum, Fukuoka, Japan (July 24-August 18, 1974). Cezanne Retrospective. Künsthalle Tubingen, D-72076 Tübingen, Germany (organizer) (January 16-April 27, 1993). Cezanne au fil de l'eau. Musée Granet, 13100 Aix-en-Provence, France (organizer) (June 15-September 15, 2000). Monet to Dalí: Modern Masters from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Beijing World Art Museum (May 26-August 27, 2006); Mori Art Center (September 16-November 26, 2006); Seoul Art Center, South Korea (December 22, 2006-March 28, 2007); Seoul Olympic Museum of Art, South Korea (April 7-May 20, 2007); Vancouver Art Gallery, Vancouver, Canada (June 9-September 16, 2007); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 21, 2007-January 13, 2008); Frist Art Museum, Nashville, TN (February 15-June 1, 2008); Utah Museum of Fine Arts, Salt Lake City, UT (June 22-September 21, 2008); The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI (October 12, 2008-January 18, 2009).
Quick Overview
- Artist
- Paul Cezanne (French, 1839–1906)
- Date
- c. 1895–1900
- Medium
- oil on fabric
- Dimensions
- Framed: 74.9 x 97.2 x 8.3 cm (29 1/2 x 38 1/4 x 3 1/4 in.); Unframed: 59.2 x 81 cm (23 5/16 x 31 7/8 in.)
- Type
- Painting
- Classification
- Painting
- Department
- Modern European Painting and Sculpture
- Credit line
- Bequest of Leonard C. Hanna Jr.
- Accession no.
- 1958.20
More by Paul Cezanne in museum collections
Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.
Open-access museum record · AT-00009194
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