“Water Lilies” by Claude Monet

mpressionism
A Report by Beatrice Espela & Chuck Balisalisa
Background
• First distinctly modern art
movement in painting.
• Started in Paris in the 1860s, then
eventually spread to Europe and
the United States.
• Originated by artists consequently
shunned by academic institutions.
• “Salon des Refuses” (Salon of The
Refused)
“Water Lilies” by Claude Monet
Background
• The point is to capture the
momentary, sensory effect of a
scene - the impression objects made
on the eye in a fleeting instant.
• Painting scene from a glance.
• Expressing the essence of the
subject rather than reproducing it.

“Water Lilies” by Claude Monet

“. . .Paint generously and unhesitatingly, for it is
best not to lose the impression.”

—Camille Pissarro
 Key
Points
• Loosened brushwork
• Lightened palettes of pure, intense
colors. Vibrant, and unblended.
• Abandoned traditional linear perspective
• Avoided clarity to focus on more
important elements
• En plein air - The act of painting
outdoors.
• Judged to be unfinished and of
amateurish quality
“The Cliff Walk at Pourville” by Claude Monet
 Impressionists aimed to be painters of
the real - they aimed to extend the
possible subjects for paintings.

They strayed away from depictions of

idealized forms and perfect symmetry,
and instead concentrated on the world
as they saw it; imperfect in a myriad of
ways.

“The Cliff Walk at Pourville” by Claude Monet

Scientific thought at the time were
beginning to recognize that what the
eye perceives and what the brain
understands are two different things.
The Impressionists sought to
capture the optical effects of light to
convey:
• passage of time
• changes in weather
• and other shifts in the atmosphere
Art did not necessarily rely on
realistic depictions.
“Wild Poppies, near Argenteuil” by Claude Monet
 Édouard Manet
• 1832 – 1833 Paris, France
• Had an upper-class upbringing, but also
led a bohemian life.
• Injected new content & altered the
conventional elements.
• Alla prima – Painting colors directly.
“The Luncheon on The Grass”
“Manet Family in Their Garden”
 Claude Monet
• 1840 – 1926 Paris, France
• Leader of the impressionist movement.
• Masterful as a colorist and as a painter of
light.
• Inspired other impressionists.
• His later work often achieved a
remarkable degree of abstraction
“Women in the Garden”
“Woman with a Parasol”
“Impression Sunrise”
“Bridge over a Pond of Water Lilies”
 Berthe Morisot
• 1841 – 1895 Paris, France
• Accepted to the Salon at 23
• Held her rank among French painters
until she died
• Married Eugène Manet
• Her talents and skill won her the respect
of her male colleagues as their equal – an
achievement that was very uncommon
for the times.
“The Cradle”
“Young Woman in a Ball Gown”
 Pierre Auguste
Renoir
• 1841 – 1919 Limoges, France
• Known for his paintings of bustling Parisian
modernity and leisure.
• Explored Renaissance painting in the middle
of his career.
• Influenced Fauvism and Cubism
• Focused on issues of color, composition,
and depth rather than quick sketches of
individual moments.
“The Frog Pond”
“Dance at the Moulin de la Galette”
 John Singer
Sargent
• 1856 – 1925 London, United Kingdom
• The premiere portraitist of his generation.
• Used vibrant impressionistic brushstrokes
and untraditional compositional solutions
• Executed en plein air alongside his friend
Claude Monet
• Excellently captured personalities,
aspirations, inclinations, and distinct
characteristics of his subject.
“Lady Agnew of Lochnaw”
“Mrs. Carl Meyer and Her Children”