The Impressionist movement originated in France in the 19th century and lasted from 1867 to 1886. Impressionists broke from traditional European painting techniques and incorporated new elements into the chemistry of color in order to achieve new levels of tone, and exact color. Impressionists created paintings that were suddenly different in how they looked because they applied paint in small touches of pure paint color rather than broad, mixed brushstrokes. This resulted in Impressionist artists having the ability to emphasize the impression of an object or subject matter. The impressionist style allows the artist to capture an image that someone might see if they only caught a quick glimpse of the image. Impressionist paintings are usually outdoor scenes with bright, vibrant colors, without an emphasis on detail. Impressionist art allows an artist to create a mood, while portraying a scene that is not realistic, but might be perceived by any spectator.
Impressionism is generally a light and spontaneous method of painting, where an artist attempts to capture the impression of light in a scene. The name of the movement was derived from one of Monet’s early works ‘Impression: Sunrise’ which was singled out by art critic Louis Leroy. Some of the most famous impressionist painters include Monet Renoir, Sisley, Pissarro, Degas, Bazille, Manet, Cassatt, and Caillebotte.
Pierre Auguste Renoir
Pierre Auguste Renoir was born in Limoges, France in 1841 and as a child worked in a factory painting designs on china. At the age of 17 he was copying paintings onto fans and lamp shades. In 1862 Renoir was formally educated at the academy of the painter Charles Gabriel Gleyre in Paris, and his early works took notable inspiration from French artists Eugene Delacroix, and Claude Monet.
Pierre Auguste Renoir is well known for his intimate paintings, especially those of nude females. He is recognized as one of the greates and most independent painters of his time. Renoir is noted for his use of brilliant colors, his variety of subjects, his intimacy, and his harmony of lines. He was one of the few Impressionist painters that found an equal interst in both the human figure and landscapes. Renoir's first exhibiton was in Paris in 1864 but he was not recognized for his works until 10 years later. Some of Renoir's most famous works include Le Bal au Moulin de la Galette, and Madame Charpentier and Her Children - these works demonstrate Renoir's mastery of the human form and the depiction of light. After Renoir had achieved a solid reputation he exhibited in Paris in 1883. In 1887 he created a series of nude female figures he named The Bathers, which reveal his skillful ability to convey texture and skin color. This series of paintings is so far unsurpassed in modern art because of their excellent representation of feminine grace. Renoir was crippled with arthiritis in the last twenty years of his life but he continued to paint with his brush strapped to his arm. Renoir died in Cagnes in 1919.
Claude Monet
Claude Monet was one of the founding fathers of the Impressionist movement in France. He was born in Paris and his date of birth was 1840. Monet started doing caricatures as a little boy and a local shop keeper, Eugene Boudin saw the talent of the young boy and provided his very first painting lessons. Claude Monet was drafted to go to Northern Africa for 2 years and upon his return he took painting lessons at Gleyre’s studio in Paris and met Auguste Renoir, Sisley, Bazille and other well known artists. Monet eventually turned from the traditional painting style of the times, which was not well taken by the art community. In 1883 Monet moved to Giverny and rented a house where he stayed until his death in 1926. Below is a list of Monet’s most famous paintings, the years they were created, where they are located (gallery names), and the names of each painting:
La Grenouillere,1869 Metropolitan Museum of Art
Garden at Sainte-Adresse,1867 Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Beach at Sainte-Adresse,1867
Magpie
The Beach at Trouville,1870 National Gallery,London
Impression: soleil levant,1872
Impression: Soleil Levant (Impression,Sunrise),1873 Musee Marmottan,Paris
Regatta at Argenteuil,1872 Musee d'Orsay,Paris
Coquelicots (Poppies, Near Argenteuil) ,1873 Musee d'Orsay
The Highway Bridge at Argenteuil,1874 National Gallery of Art, Washington DC
La Promenade,1875
The Bridge at Argenteuil,1874 Louvre,Paris
La femme au Metier,1875
Saint-Lazare Station,1877 National Gallery,London
Boulevard des Capucines,1873
Landscape: Parc Monceau,Paris
Rouen Cathedral: Full Sunlight,1894 Louvre,Paris
Rouen Cathedral, the West Portal,Dull Weather,1894 Musee d'Orsay,Paris
Rouen Cathedral,the West Portal and Saint-Romain,Full Sunlight,Harmony in Blue and Gold,1894 Musee d'Orsay,Paris
Poplars along the River Epte,Autumn,1891 Private Collection
Water Lilies (The Clouds), 1903 Private Collection
Water Lilies 1906 Art Institute of Chicago
Waterlillies,Green Reflection, Left Part,1916-1923 Orangerie,Paris
Haystacks at Chailly at Sunrise,1865 San Diego Museum of Art
Meule,Effet de Neige,le Martin (Morning Snow Effect)
Meule,Degel.Soleil Couchant
Meule,Soleil Couchant,1891 Museum of Fine Arts,Boston
Wheat Stacks (End of Summer), 1890-1891 The Art Institute of Chicago
The Thames at Westminster (Westminster Bridge),1871
Houses of Parliament,London, Sun Breaking Through Fog,1904 Musee d'Orsay,Paris
Houses of Parliament,London,1905 Musee Marmottan,Paris
The Floating Ice,1880
Path in the Ile Saint-Martin,Vetheuil
The Artist's Garden at Vetheuil,1881 Private Collection
Rock Arch West of Etretat (The Manneport),1883
Garden in Bordighera,Impression of Morning, 1884
Bulbfield and Windmill Near Leyden,1886 State Museum,Amsterdam
The Artist's Garden at Giverny,1900 Musee d'Orsay,Paris
Gladioli
Martin
