Impressionism
1860s-1880s
Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by small, thin brush strokes, emphasis on light and its changing qualities, ordinary subject matter, and unusual visual angles.
Historical Context
Impressionism originated in Paris in the 1860s as a reaction against the rigid rules of academic painting. The name came from Claude Monet's work "Impression, Sunrise". Artists began painting outdoors (en plein air) to capture natural light and color.
Key Characteristics
- •Emphasis on capturing light and its changing qualities
- •Visible brush strokes and open composition
- •Ordinary subject matter from everyday life
- •Movement and unusual visual angles
- •Pure, unmixed colors applied side-by-side
Notable Impressionism Artists
Degas, Edgar
1834–1917
Gauguin, Paul
1848–1903
Pissarro, Lucien
1863–1944
Pissarro, Camille
1831–1903
Fantin-Latour, Henri
1836–1904
Seurat, Georges
1859–1891
Remington, Frederic
1861–1909
Morisot, Berthe
1841–1895
Chase, William Merritt
1849–1916
Oppler, Ernst
1867–1929
Sisley, Alfred
1839–1899
Cassatt, Mary
1844–1926
Robinson, Theodore
1852–1896
Twachtman, John Henry
1853–1902
Alt, Rudolf von
1812–1905
Monet, Claude
1840–1926
Gonzalès, Eva
1849–1883
Krøyer, Peder Severin
1851–1909
Matisse, Henri
1869–1954
Liebermann, Max
1847–1935
Finch, Alfred William
1854–1930
Berchmans, Emile
1867–1947
Thaulow, Fritz
1847–1906
Caillebotte, Gustave
1848–1894
Impressionism Artworks
Chrysanthemums in the Garden at Petit-Gennevilliers
Gustave Caillebotte
Young Woman Knitting
Berthe Morisot
The Pink Dress (Albertie-Marguerite Carré, later Madame Ferdinand-Henri Himmes, 1854–1935)
Berthe Morisot
Porte de la Reine at Aigues-Mortes
Jean-Frédéric Bazille
Sahurs Meadows in Morning Sun
Alfred Sisley
Rue Eugène Moussoir at Moret: Winter
Alfred Sisley
The Road from Moret to Saint-Mammès
Alfred Sisley
Allée of Chestnut Trees
Alfred Sisley
View of Marly-le-Roi from Coeur-Volant
Alfred Sisley
The Bridge at Villeneuve-la-Garenne
Alfred Sisley
The Road from Versailles to Louveciennes
Alfred Sisley
The Garden of the Tuileries on a Winter Afternoon
Camille Pissarro
Haystacks, Morning, Eragny
Camille Pissarro
The Garden of the Tuileries on a Winter Afternoon
Camille Pissarro
Rue de l'Epicerie, Rouen (Effect of Sunlight)
Camille Pissarro
The Boulevard Montmartre on a Winter Morning
Camille Pissarro
Morning, An Overcast Day, Rouen
Camille Pissarro
Steamboats in the Port of Rouen
Camille Pissarro
Poplars, Eragny
Camille Pissarro
Bather in the Woods
Camille Pissarro
A Washerwoman at Eragny
Camille Pissarro
Two Young Peasant Women
Camille Pissarro
The Harvest, Pontoise (La Récolte, Pontoise)
Camille Pissarro
Washerwoman, Study
Camille Pissarro