Impressionism Art Movement

The Impressionism movement in the art world started when a group of artists organized an exhibition in Paris, France. [1] This style of painting spread to other countries in Europe, but the most famous Impressionists are French such as Edgar Degas, Claude Monet, and Camille Pissarro. [2] Canvases with Impressionism artwork display thick brushstrokes that can be seen at close range. Also, the painters developed scenes of leisure with bright colors all over their paintings.

A group of French artists in 1874 known as the Anonymous Society of Painters, Sculptors, Printmakers, etc. were the ones that had their artwork displayed [1] at the studio of photographer/journalist Felix Nadar in Paris. They had a total of eight shows between 1874 and 1886. [3] Preceding artistic movements, for example Classicism and Realism, swayed the Impressionist painters. People paid attention to art after Paris hosted a World Fair in 1855. This event furnished to the city’s standing as the hub of the art world. It also became the place to be for aspiring painters. [2]

Members of the Anonymous Society of Painters, Sculptors, Printmakers, etc. didn’t achieve much success after forming their own art show. An alternative for the members was to continue have their artwork shown at the more established Salon de Paris, where they would have more people looking at paintings. [4] The Academie de Beaux-Arts, or Academy of Fine Arts, set the standards for French art since the 1600s. [5] The Salon was created by the Academy so that once a year some artists will be honored for their ability to created fascinating and conforming artworks that meet the Academy’s requirements for Realism piece of art. [1, 5]

Conservative art critic Louis Leroy was unkind to the artists after seeing the first exhibition that the Anonymous Society of Painters, Sculptors, Printmakers, etc. set up. Yet, he also was responsible for the existence of the term Impressionism. He was not satisfied with Claude Monet’s Impression, Sunrise (Musee Marmottan Monet, Paris) 1873 because it seemed to be unfinished. Louis felt it was just a sketch or an “impression.” He wasn’t happy with the independent artists not mixing colors, using quick, broken brushstrokes that barely showed any shape, and indulging on the effects of light. Hence, it was this painting that gave Impressionist movement its name. [1, 6]

After reading some online publications, I figure the French Impressionists yearned for some attention since their artwork weren’t getting much accolades from the judges at Salon. Nothing was mentioned about the judges’ personal backgrounds. Since the Academie de Beaux-Arts was aligned in a way with the French government, I would say they didn’t want to lose their integrity and position. The public trust the jury’s viewpoints on how to separate good art from mediocre art. They may have voted against the Impressionists’ earlier works even if they thought the artwork were ingenious. I know I would behave like that. I’ll have fears of might be seen as a pariah among my peers.

The Impressionists wanted to showcase different genre of paintings. For whatever reason, the established requirement that defines appropriate art wasn’t good enough. I can’t blame them for being bored of looking at the same type of subjects to paint. I’m sure it was more relaxing and mellow to study individuals just lounging around the outdoors in Paris, where the average temperature is 75 degrees F during the summer and around 35 degrees F during the winter. France gets an annual rainfall of approximately 786mm/31 inches. I can visualize that members of the court and the Church have their impolite ways to have portraits of them done the way they want it. And of course painters would need to tolerate the subjects not posing properly so the portrait won’t be ridiculed. Nobody wants to be stressed out for any reason.

I’m sure the Impressionists wanted others to see themselves as innovators. They were showing a unique way to paint brilliant images. Moreover, they saw their paintings being worthy of seen as a stimulating way to read any artistic expressions. Maybe they had a message for people to find out.

[1] www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/imml/hd_imml.htm
[2] www.uncg.edu/rom/courses/common/impressionism.htm
[3] http://www.impressionism.org/
[4] http://www.impressionism.org/cafe.htm
[5] http://jnootzie.hubpages.com/hub/Art-Through-the-Ages-Impressionism
[6] http://www.huntfor.com/arthistory/c19th/impressionism.htm

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