The Académie Suisse was a very popular, informal art school founded by Martin François Suisse (1781–1859) in 1815, and was located at the corner of the Quai des Orfévres and the Boulevard du Palais, in Paris, France. From Delacroix to Cézanne, most major French artists frequented this venue to meet colleagues and to study after male and female models.

Paul Cézanne was a French Post-Impressionist painter whose work introduced new modes of representation and influenced avant-garde artistic movements of the early 20th century. Cézanne is said to have formed the bridge between late 19th-century Impressionism and early 20th century Cubism.