Paul Cezanne was born at Aix-en-Provence in the south of France on January 19, 1839. Regarded today as one of the great modern painters, Cezanne was a contemporary of the impressionists. He went beyond their styles in brushstroke and fall of light on objects to create in his words, ìsomething more solid and durableî. Not until the latter part of his career did Cezanne focus more on painting portraits and still life paintings. The Smoker, painted from 1890-1892, shows many of Cezanneís known traits such as objects of fruit and bottles in the background. The Smoker is currently being exhibited at the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia.