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Impressionism not only encouraged Cezanne to adopt a brighter palette, but also gave him a way of expressing form. Rather than
model three-dimensional shapes by gradually blending shades from dark to light, Cezanne, like the impressionists, gave them form
by juxtaposing colours. "There is neither line nor modeling," he said, "there is only contrast."
The tipped plate is molded by individual arcs of peachy ivory and cooler blue tones. The shadow that falls below it does not
deepen continuously but is a patchwork of blues and complementary rust-coloured browns. Rounded fruits, like the flat surfaces of
the table, are built up of what Cezanne called "little planes" of colour, applied in brushstrokes that echo the faceted sides of
the pitcher.
Cezanne painted this same pitcher and table in other canvases. His constant rearranging of these and other props was a way to
understand and create structure. The very selection of objects, combining, for example, the roundness of fruits and bowls and the
angles of furniture, reflects careful decisions about order and composition. This analytical way of seeing the world, whether the
countryside of Provence or the man-made landscape of a still life, had great impact on the next generation of artists. For
Picasso, Cezanne was a "mother"; for Matisse, "father to us all." Yet Cezanne himself stressed that he painted as Pissarro and
the impressionists had taught him, from nature and according to his sensations.
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