Impressionism in Five Minutes
Updated: Sep 11, 2022
When: 1860 - 1886
Where: Paris
Key Artists: Claude Monet, Pierre Auguste Renoir, JMW Turner, Edgar Degas, Paul Cezanne
Claude Monet is undoubtedly the most well-known impressionist painter, in fact the impressionism movement got its name from the Monet painting entitled Impression, soleil levant, from 1872!
Impressionism is well-known for bringing the creation of fine art out of the studio and into the open air, where the artists could react instinctively and with agility to the changing light conditions, creating paintings charged with emotional and, well, impressions of their surroundings, the likes of which simply couldn't be created from the confines of a studio, from reference sketches and studies.
Impressionist art shimmered with emotion and atmosphere and despite many of the most famous paintings from this period being reduced to decorations on consumer products such as bedspreads, confectionery boxes and cheap homeware prints, the impressionism movements remains one of the most revolutionary, fresh and exciting art periods in modern history.
Here are a few key works of Impressionism, to give you a flavour of the movement:
Further Reading
This guide gives only a brief introduction to Impressionism - here are some great resources to dive into to find out more about this incredible art movement!