Paul Cézanne's "Still Life with Bottle, Glass, and Lemons" is a notable example of the artist's early work. Painted between 1867 and 1869, the piece demonstrates Cézanne's initial interest in the still life genre, a subject he would return to frequently throughout his career.
 
In this painting, Cézanne depicts a tabletop arrangement of everyday items - a bottle, a glass, and lemons. At first glance, the painting may appear simple, but it reveals the artist's innovative approach to composition and perspective. The table seems tilted, offering a unique viewpoint that presents the objects from a variety of angles, a feature that would become characteristic in his later work and significantly influence Cubism.
 
Cézanne’s still life paintings often go beyond simple representations of the objects themselves. He used these seemingly ordinary subjects as a means to explore form and color. In this painting, the arrangement of the bottle, glass, and lemons allows him to experiment with different shapes and how they interact in a shared space.
 
In terms of color, the painting is rather subdued compared to his later work, mostly utilizing earth tones and muted hues. However, you can still see Cézanne's thoughtful use of color to model form, giving each object a sense of solidity and volume.
 
While this painting may not have the intense color or geometric exploration of his later, more renowned works, "Still Life with Bottle, Glass, and Lemons" is important because it marks the beginning of Cézanne's exploration of the still life genre and showcases the early stages of his innovative approach to perspective and composition.