This composition is an oil on canvas, hand painted reproduction of an original oil painting by Paul Cézanne created in 1866. In the summer of 1866 Cézanne relocated to Aix en Provence and dedicated his days to painting still life and portraits. This was his first time Cézanne had committed any real serious time to his painting: Therefore his enthusiasm was great and his time productive: Indeed, Cézanne’s friend Valabrègue is noted to have said to Zola, "I only posed for one day. The uncle is usually the model. Every afternoon, another portrait appears"

During the fall and winter of 1866 Cézanne produced ten portraits of his uncle Aubert who was in fact a bailiff: And not a Monk as portrayed here. This was one of various costumes Aubert donned at the artist’s request – Other regale included a turban and a cloth hat: None of which seem to have any particular significance within the paintings.

Cézanne used a rather limited, monochromatic palette of colors for this oil painting and the other portraits he completed during this time. The young Cézanne focused upon applying the paint thickly, working rapidly with a palette knife: Akin to the technique who was his hero and mentor Gustav Courbet. Today, the original oil painting is part of the permanent collection at the Metropolitan Museum in New York.