The works, doctrine, and persona of Paul Cézanne (1839-1906) have all heavily influenced successive generations of artists from both the modern and contemporary eras. Scholars frequently examine Cézanne’s impact on the artistic movements of Fauvism, Cubism, and Expressionism. While these connections have been widely discussed, Cézanne’s relation to and impact upon the iconic French Dada artist Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968), the American Abstract Expressionist Clyfford Still (1904-1980), and the British street artist Banksy (b.1974) has not been given sufficient analytical attention.
Duchamp coined the expression "cult of Cézanne" when he discussed other artists (including himself) who spent time referencing, studying, and following the paintings and career of Cézanne. In this thesis, I am appropriating the phrase "cult of Cézanne," and loosely defining it to incorporate a group of modern artists (including Duchamp, Clyfford Still, and Banksy) who were/are leading figures of their own respective movements while being notoriously autonomous vis-à-vis the other "members" as well as the artists and art officials working contemporarily.
A careful analysis of Cézanne’s letters and selected primary sources from the late nineteenth century provides evidence for ways in which Cézanne’s reclusive persona, and his search for a truly autonomous painting style, connect him to these three disciples. The commonalities between Cézanne and his "cult members" exemplify ways in which these three artists refused to become an extension of the "Modernist institution" of Cézanne. By rejecting the formal style of their master, they instead followed in his footsteps by emulating his reclusive lifestyle and single-minded approach to artmaking. Without previously studying, referencing, and/or following Cézanne at some point in their career, they might not have been provided with this kind of exemplar. I believe that shadowing Cézanne’s lifestyle, his interaction with the art world, and his individualism contributed to each artist’s success. Their self-styled alienation added to their intrigue, making their lifestyle as profound as their art; and controlling the reception of their work empowered their position in the art world, protecting it from bias and association with other movements or schools.