Trees and road FWN 264 1890 71.7 cm x 59 Barnes, Philadelphia
I love the colours of this painting – they really do delight!
It’s so playful too! The way the bushes sneak up and try to hide behind the tree: the way all the branches reach out into the blue towards the sun, stretching and wriggling to embrace the warmth. I’m reliably informed that the oak is one of the last trees to leaf. Cezanne holds the pine tree as the living symbol of Provence; it’s so refreshing to find him discovering the strength and beauty of the oak.
I love the way Cezanne makes the tree stand out against the pathway and the background bushes; the tree trunk and branches immediately above sit close to us, sharp and focused and distinct; its central branches rising upwards like arms extended in a hymn to the universe.
And yet, its branches to the left stretch and intertwine with the smaller oak beyond the pathway - so closely that they are almost indistinguishable.
This causes our eyes to oscillate right to left, back and forth, from oak to oak – continuously trying to make sense of the dynamic intertwining.
This interplay is framed within the frame of the painting by two straight vertical lines, one immediately behind the main oak on the right, and a second, immediately next to the smaller oak on the left (this side of the road).
In between the two oaks is the ‘V’ shape which links the two oaks through depth, and creates a swirling motion, back, up and over, around.
This centrally-framed swirl is echoed in smaller swirls of the darker greens of the bushes at the right of the main oak; and these swirls are counterbalanced by the bushes that sneak up behind the main oak.
The energy of the sneaking bushes and the swirling foliage push the oak even more towards us.
Resistance is futile:
let yourself be assimilated into this playfulness!
just enjoy
and discover
playful meditation
to meditate does not mean to fight with a problem
to meditate means to observe
your smile proves it
it proves that you are being gentle with yourself
that the sun of awareness is shining in you
that you have control of your situation
you are yourself
and you have acquired some peace
Thich Nhat Hanh