Impressionism: What It Is, And Characteristics Of This Artistic Style
The world of impressionism is the world of Belle Époque The beginning, the year 1874; Paris was boiling with innovations and changes. On the Boulevard des Capucines, a former photographer’s studio remains open every day until ten at night.
Inside, the works of innovative artists who Louis Leroy, an art critic, has pejoratively called “impressionists” are exhibited. Thus he cites them in the article he writes for the satirical newspaper Le Charivari: “The Impressionist Exhibition.” As often happens, the name, initially mocking and with the sole intention of mocking its authors, transcends time and ends up giving the movement an official name.
Characteristics of Impressionism: rebellious painters?
Who were those young people (and not so young) who exhibited on the Boulevard des Capucines, that April 1874? It was a collective of artists disenchanted with official art (which did not allow them to give free rein to their creations), grouped under the unoriginal name of Societe Anonyme des Artistes, Peintres, Sculpteurs, Graveursetc. The exhibition showed the work that would inspire Leroy to give the group its name: Impression. Rising Sunby Claude Monet
If these artists had to exhibit outside the official Salon, it meant, of course, that their style was not well received. And indeed; We have already commented how the critic Louis Leroy harshly attacks them in his article.
However, it is fair to say that the reputation of rebels that has been granted to this group of painters from the Boulevard des Capucines (the embryo of what would become Impressionism years later) is not entirely deserved. Because, although it is true that it was from this 1874 exhibition that the movement gained strength (and, with it, all the anti-academic charge it carried), it is no less true that long before there were other artists who also dared to lighten his brushstroke and capture the light and atmosphere above the form on the canvas.
Édouard Manet, the father of impressionism?
Édouard Manet (1832-1883) has traditionally been considered the “spiritual father” of the movement, despite the fact that the artist never fully identified with it nor exhibited alongside the Impressionists. Indeed, Manet never saw himself as a “rebellious artist,” even though two of his works caused a real stir We are indeed talking about the well-known Lunch on the grass (1863), which was rejected by the Lounge official, and the no less famous Olympiamade in the same year but exhibited in 1865.
Traditionally, it has been considered that the scandal came from presenting naked women in a context far from mythology or allegory (the only contexts in which it was allowed), although recent studies are inclined to think, in light of the criticisms that They were published at the time when the commotion came more from the flat use of colors and the way they were captured on the canvas.
Manet’s works are framed in the years before the birth of the impressionist group and, although it is true that he promoted the movement and was a friend of some members (such as Claude Monet), the influences of this style are not seen in his work until the last years of his production. Some examples of these late impressionist works are a parisian (1882), painted a year before his death, or the curious canvas an asparagus (1880).
The long history of “impressionism”
In reality, finding the origin of impressionism is difficult, and also risky. Unlike other movements with clear antecedents, The trajectory of what we call Impressionism can be extended to the 17th century itself All you have to do is contemplate the magnificent Views of the garden of the Villa Medici in Romeby Diego Velázquez (executed around 1630) to verify that the impressionist technique expanded far beyond the final decades of the 19th century.
Velázquez captures the exterior of the Roman villa with quick, loose brushstrokes, and in this way manages to capture the effects of light that, similar to “canonical” impressionist paintings, blurs the shapes and confuses the colors.
And of course, The brushwork of William Turner (1775-1851) is also impressionist, a true visionary ahead of his time, not in vain known as “the painter of light.” As early as 1812, Turner finished painting Hannibal crossing the Alpswhose sun rising between the frenetic brushstrokes inevitably reminds us of Impression. Rising Sun by Monet.
His work is even more “impressionistic” Rain, steam and speeddated 1844 and which, thirty years before the group was named, could already be considered a fully impressionist painting.
The “canonical” antecedents that the manuals collect from the impressionists of the Boulevard des Capucines are John-Barthold Jongkind (1819-1891), a Dutch painter based in Normandy whose seascapes perfectly capture the atmosphere of the sea; and Eugène Boudin (1824-1898), one of the first artists to paint au plein air (outdoor) and which strongly influenced the first Monet.
Characteristics of impressionism
After taking a brief tour of the background of Impressionism and explaining how and where the “official” group originated, we believe it is necessary to specify what the characteristics of this movement are.
Atmosphere and light
We have already commented on the loose and fast brushstroke as one of its most recognizable elements. The Impressionists of the 19th century moved away from academic art and sought other artistic languages ; They find this new path in the capture of the atmosphere and, therefore, of light. For the impressionists, the subject has ceased to be important; What is really essential in a painting is the way of representing reality.
To capture this changing atmosphere, impressionists need a quick and visible brushstroke that allows them to capture all the nuances of light. These nuances are so valued that some of these artists go so far as to make “series” of the same theme; famous is the one that Claude Monet dedicated to the Rouen Cathedral, made up of no less than 30 paintings that capture the façade of the building at various times of the day.
But it is not only the passage of time (and, therefore, the change of light) that attracts impressionists. They are also interested in the diverse environments that different atmospheric phenomena give to the same place. The Spanish painter Fernando de Amárica (1866-1956), who developed much of his work in an impressionist style, made his City with sun, a perspective of the Plaza de la Virgen Blanca in Vitoria-Gasteiz on a bright day; A year later, he painted exactly the same spot in the city with intense rain (city with rain1906).
In the open air
And if the quick and loose brushstroke was an essential element to produce impressionist works, what can we say about the outdoors. It is completely impossible to capture light variations from inside a studio, so artists begin to leave their rooms and throw themselves into nature, into the city, into life
In the development of plein air painting (au plein air, in French) had a lot to do with the technical improvement that promoted the Second Industrial Revolution. The brushes incorporated a metal piece that firmly adhered the bristles to the wood, making them much more resistant. On the other hand, packaged paints began to be marketed, both in tubes and cans, which saved the artist the tedium of preparing the pigments. Furthermore, these containers were, of course, much more “carryable”.
The eye is the one who mixes, not the painter
Being much easier to handle, painting in rolled tubes emphasized the application of pigments directly to the fabric, without mixing, which was directly linked to the optical theories of the time.
In impressionist canvases, the colors are not mixed, but are strategically arranged so that it is the viewer’s eye who mixes them. This is why, if we look at one of these works too closely, the only thing we will be able to perceive is a meaningless amalgamation of colors. But, when we take the necessary steps away… the magic is done! The scene appears before us.
Of course, this is not a sharp and clear scene like those offered by official academic art. For many, the Impressionists “destroyed” painting, they offered “sketches” as finished paintings; In short, they laughed at the public Not in vain, in the scathing criticism of Louis Leroy that we have already cited in the introduction, the fictitious painter who comes to see the exhibition, in front of one of the paintings on display, takes off his glasses and cleans them, believing that they are dirty.
What the poor painter in Leroy’s criticism ignored (or wished to ignore) was that, after the invention of photography in the 1830s, “realistic” painting ceased to make sense. One cannot deny the enormous weight that the photographic camera had in the birth of these new movements and in the course of the history of 20th century art. And by the way, it is still ironic that the first Impressionist exhibition, the one that took place in 1874 and which was the target of so much ridicule, was located in an old photographic studio.
We have already cited Manet as the supposed father of impressionism (although we have already seen that this was not exactly the case). But who were the painters who exhibited for the first time on the Boulevard des Capucines, that April 15, 1874?
Among them we find Claude Monet (1840-1926), for many, the highest representative and soul of the movement. His famous water lilies, a series of paintings based on the flowers in the pond of his house, have become a true symbol of Impressionism, and let us not forget that it was his Impression. Rising Sunwhich gave its name to the style.
However, Camille Pisarro (1830-1903) was the character who brought the group together and the one who promoted it most actively, despite the fact that in the 1880s he leaned towards the pointillist theories of Seurat. On the other hand, Edgar Degas (1834-1917), famous for his paintings of dancers, was not actually an absolute impressionist, as he took his inspiration from models as classic as the paintings of Ingres or as exotic as Japanese ukiyo-e prints. .
Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919) is another of the great names of Impressionism which, however, also presents elements that distance it somewhat from the essence of the movement. Famous are his party paintings, which perfectly portray the joy of Belle Époque; Dance at the Moulin de la Galette (1876) is one of his most characteristic works.
On the contrary, Alfred Sisley (1839-1899) is one of the most forgotten names, although many scholars give him the honor of being the “purest” impressionist His works, mainly focused on the beautiful landscapes around Paris (especially the Moret-sur-Loing region), perfectly capture the atmosphere of light and sky. Little or not valued at all in life, Sisley died in poverty, and only after his death did his work begin to be considered as it deserved.
Finally, we cannot finish this article without mentioning the great female impressionists. Berthe Morrisot (1841-1895), disciple, model and sister-in-law of Manet (she married Eugène, his brother) is one of the most prominent figures. Her splendid production, evidently influenced by Renoir (or perhaps the other way around…) deserves to be in a prominent place in the movement. Unfortunately, as is often the case, Berthe’s name has been absent from art history volumes for too many years, as has Mary Cassatt (1845-1927), the painter who exported Impressionism to the United States.
