Post-Impressionist artist Paul Cezanne was the inspiration for these vibrant still life drawings done in oil pastels. Certain artists are driven to paint in their own way, and Cezanne blazed a trail that went against society’s norms in the mid-1800’s. Determined to paint for passion and not for approval, he spent his life freely expressing himself using painterly, loose brush strokes to apply colors that did not blend together, eventually changing the way people viewed art. The 6th grade artists understood this and spent time arranging a still life at home, before composing their own still life on paper. After experimenting with oil pastels and learning about analogous and complimentary colors, they used Cezanne’s color palette of rich jewel tones: deep reds, dark greens, luminous golds, cool blues, and warm browns, to bring their artwork to life.