Impressionism

Impressionism

• • • •

19th century 1870-1880’s Paris, France Term comes from Monet’s painting Impression-Sunrise • Photography invented in 1826 affected the art world • Rejected by art critics

• First total artistic revolution since the Renaissance • Radical change from traditional art schools – Salon Art Exhibition

• Departs from tradition by rejecting – – – – –

Renaissance perspective, Balance idealized figures Chiaroscuro Religious, historical, or mythological subjects

• Exhibited their Art Independently • Represented immediate visual sensations through color and light • All started as Realists

Characteristics • • • • • • • • •

Realistic, everyday scenes Painted outdoors “en plein air” Short “broken” brush strokes Overall visual effects instead of details Mixed and pure unmixed colour. Immediacy and Movement Interest in Light and colour Optical Mixing of colour Doesn’t use black, uses complimentaries to make shadows and highlights “No shadow is black, it always has a color. Nature knows only color, white and black are not colors.”

Artists • • • • •

Monet Degas Pissarro Rodin Cassat

Eduardo Manet • Father of Modern Art • Had a great influence on the Impressionist movement • Never exhibited with the Impressionists • Attempted to exhibit at the Salon • Utilized Black in his work • Wanted viewer to look at his paintings, not through them like a window

Eduardo Manet, Luncheon on the Grass,1863

• Marked him as a “danger” to public morality • Based on Renaissance paintings – Triangle composition – Still life – Illusion of depth • Her contemporary look and direct gaze made it scandalous • Nude female in an everyday setting with two clothed men. Luncheon on the Grass

Eduardo Manet, Gare Saint-Lazare, 1873

Gare Saint-Lazare

• No chiaroscuro • Light source • Layout of depth/composition • Dichotomy of the two figures • Cropped like a photo • No black

• Eduardo Manet,The Waitress, 1878

• Looser, longer brushstrokes • Directional Snapshot effect • Lots of movement give impression of scene

The Waitress

Manet, Bar at Folies Bergere

Claude Monet • • • •

Leader of Impressionism Only painted outside Did not paint objects, only the colors he saw Optical Mixing/Broken Color – Putting pure color next to each other so they are visually blended

• Basis for Impressionist theories of color and light • Painted many series of the same subject

Claude Monet, Argenteuil, 1872

Monet, Rouen Cathedral

• Did 30+ paintings • Depicted the heavy massive stone as only light and color

Monet, Water Lily

Monet, Houses of Parliment

Monet, Venice Twilight

Monet, Waterlilies

Monet, The Water Lily Pond

Camille Pissarro • Father of the Impressionists • Only artist to show work at all 8 Impressionist Exhibitions • Oldest member • Considered both an Impressionist and PostImpressionist

Pissarro, Boulevard at Night

• Liked to paint street scenes from second story windows • Shimmering light and color of the busy street • Wanted to capture the instantaneous sensation of the scene

Boulevard at Night

Pissarro, Country

Pissarro, Portrait of Madame Pissarro Sewing at a Window

Pissarro, Sunset at St. Charles

Pissarro, Portrait of a Pork Butcher

Edgar Degas • Different than most Impressionists • Did not like to paint outside “Art is not a sport.”

• Carefully considered design and positioning of people and objects • Master of line and drawing • First artist to display his pastel drawings as finished works • Did many drawing of the Ballet Dancers

Degas,Rehearsal on the Stage,1874

• Softness of costumes is contrasted with lines and edges of figures and background • Seemingly unbalanced composition – Asymmetrical feel

• Creates a feeling of immediacy and unplanned • Uses pastel to convey the color and excitement of ballet Rehearsal on the Stage

Degas, Carriage at the Races,1873

Carriage at the Races

• Used a great sense of design • Painted outdoors • High-keyed palette • Contrasts with darker tones • Horse and carriage are off-center to give the feeling of a momentary glimpse • Balanced by partial carriage on left

Degas,The Absinthe Drinker,1876

• Shows darker side of Paris • Looks like snapshot, yet is carefully planned • Diagonals draw viewer in

The Absinthe Drinker

Degas,Dance at the Moulin de la Galette Montmarte, 1876

Degas,In the Meadow, 1892

Degas, Blue Ballerinas

Degas, The Rehersal

Degas, The Dancers

Degas, The Star

Mary Cassatt • American Artist • Traveled to Paris to study Impressionism • Portrayed the social and Private Lives of Women – Mother and Children

• Highly influenced by Degas

Cassatt, Breakfast in Bed

Cassatt, Woman with a Pearl Necklace

Cassatt, In the Box

Cassatt, At the Theatre

Cassatt, La Toilette