Impressionism

Impressionism is a mid- to late-19th-century French art movement that focuses on capturing the effects of light and atmosphere on ordinary scenes. It aims to convey a momentary, visual impression rather than a polished, highly finished image. Practitioners often used loose, visible brushstrokes and preferred to paint outdoors to study natural lighting and its changing qualities.

Origins and approach: Emerging in Paris during the 1860s and 1870s, Impressionists rejected the rigid standards of the Academy and the official Salon. They favored contemporary life, landscapes, urban scenes, and scenes of leisure, seeking to render the transient effects of sunlight and color. En plein air painting, lighter palettes, and optical color mixing—placing dashes or strokes of pure color side by side rather than blending on the palette—are characteristic techniques.

Key figures and subjects: Core participants include Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro, Edgar Degas, Berthe Morisot, Alfred Sisley, and Mary Cassatt. Paul Cézanne, though often classified as a Post-Impressionist, is associated with the movement’s broader evolution toward new approaches to form and color. The subjects span rivers and gardens to cafes, trains, and other aspects of modern life, with emphasis on mood, light, and the immediacy of perception.

Exhibitions and legacy: The name Impressionism arose from a critical label after Monet’s Impression, soleil levant, shown in 1874. Beginning that year, the artists organized independent exhibitions that challenged the Salon system and helped define a new visual language. Impressionism influenced later movements such as Post-Impressionism and contributed to ongoing explorations of light, color theory, and how perception shapes painting.