Two Cézanne sketches discovered behind paintings

PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 23 (UPI) -- Conservationists at the Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia were likely the first people to lay eyes on two sketches by French painter Paul Cézanne in nearly a century.

The sketches -- one in watercolor, the other in charcoal -- were recently discovered on the reverse side of two watercolor paintings by the post-impressionist painter.

The paintings, "The Chaine de l'Etoile Mountains" (1885-86) and "Trees" (1900), are normally on display in Room 20 at the gallery, but were undergoing a paper conservation treatment. That's when conservationists noticed the unfinished sketches.

Cézanne often worked on both sides of paper when sketching in preparation for larger paintings.

It's likely no one has set eyes on these drawings since before Dr. Albert Barnes purchased them in 1921.

"Barnes bought 'The Chaine de l'Etoile Mountains' and 'Trees' from Leo Stein, the American collector who, along with his sister, Gertrude, had assembled one of the world's most important collections of modern European art," said Martha Lucy, assistant professor at Drexel University and consulting curator at the Barnes Foundation. "What Barnes probably didn't know was that in purchasing these two watercolors from Stein, he had actually acquired four works by Cézanne."

The foundation has scheduled an exhibition to highlight the discovery. The two watercolors will be framed with glass on both sides of the paper so viewers can see all four images.

"These sketches offer a window into Cezanne's artistic process, which is truly invaluable," said Barbara Buckley, senior director of conservation and chief conservator of paintings at the Barnes Foundation. "It is with great excitement that we share this discovery with our students and visitors. Our new facilities on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway allow us to do much more comprehensive conservation than ever before and we know there are many more discoveries within the Barnes Collection waiting to be unearthed. We look forward to bringing them to light over the coming months and years."

The exhibition is scheduled to open April 10 and will run through May 18.

The foundation specializes in post-impressionist and early modern paintings by artists like Cézanne, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso and Amedeo Modigliani.