There is no longer any question that Paul C￯﾿ﾽzanne was one of the great artists of our age. Since his death his fame has grown apace. The torn and controversial recluse from Aix-en-Provence has found his place in the history of art. When we now look at his work we may well sense little or nothing of the struggles and suffering that produced it; few artist have created an oeuvre so filled with peace and harmony. He painted still-life's, landscapes, portraits, and a few large figural compositions, motifs which seem entirely usual components of the classical repertoire C￯﾿ﾽzanne was so attached to. The critics have been busy on C￯﾿ﾽzanne; countless studies have dwelt on particular aspects of his art; the art historians have diligently classified and pigeonholed. Yet we know little about the man himself. And an overall approach to the man and his times, his art and his traditions, all taken together, is conspicuous by its absence. The work of his early years has always been an obstacle, those dark and daunting pictures full of violence and unbridled longing. People have preferred C￯﾿ﾽzanne the great landscape artist, C￯﾿ﾽzanne the sensitive portrait painter, C￯﾿ﾽzanne the genius with color. Of course that is C￯﾿ﾽzanne too; but the early works are equally a part of his life and the great art it produced.