🎭Avant-garde Movements in Art Unit 1 – Impressionism & Post-Impressionism

What's the Big Deal?

• Impressionism emerged in the late 19th century as a radical departure from traditional art styles
• Focused on capturing the fleeting effects of light, color, and movement in everyday scenes
• Emphasized the artist's perception and impression of a subject rather than a detailed, realistic representation
• Challenged the conventional rules of art set by the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris
• Paved the way for future avant-garde movements by breaking free from artistic norms
• Celebrated modernity, leisure activities, and the beauty of the natural world
• Introduced a new way of seeing and experiencing art that resonated with the changing society of the time

Key Players and Their Masterpieces

• Claude Monet (Impression, Sunrise; Water Lilies series; Haystacks series)
  • Leader of the Impressionist movement and master of capturing the effects of light and color
• Pierre-Auguste Renoir (Luncheon of the Boating Party; Dance at the Moulin de la Galette)
  • Known for his vibrant colors, lively brushstrokes, and depictions of leisure and beauty
• Edgar Degas (The Dance Class; Little Dancer Aged Fourteen)
  • Captured the movement and grace of ballet dancers and horse races
  • Experimented with unusual compositions and perspectives
• Camille Pissarro (The Boulevard Montmartre on a Winter Morning; The Red Roofs)
  • Mentor to many younger Impressionists and known for his rural landscapes and cityscapes
• Alfred Sisley (The Bridge at Villeneuve-la-Garenne; The Terrace at Saint-Germain, Spring)
  • Focused on capturing the changing effects of light and atmosphere in his landscapes
• Berthe Morisot (The Cradle; Woman at Her Toilette)
  • One of the few prominent female Impressionists, known for her intimate domestic scenes and portraits

Brushstrokes and Bright Colors: Techniques That Shook Things Up

• Impressionists used visible, loose brushstrokes to capture the essence of a scene quickly
• Applied paint in short, broken strokes of pure color, allowing the eye to blend them optically
• Utilized complementary colors to create vibrant, luminous effects (blue and orange, purple and yellow)
• Painted en plein air (outdoors) to directly observe and capture the changing light and atmosphere
• Embraced the use of new synthetic pigments, such as cobalt blue and cadmium yellow, for brighter colors
• Experimented with different perspectives, cropping, and compositions to create a sense of immediacy and spontaneity
• Used light colors and minimal black to convey the brightness and energy of the natural world

From Realism to Impressionism: A Game-Changer

• Realism, which preceded Impressionism, focused on depicting subjects with accuracy and objectivity
• Impressionists broke away from the strict rules and conventions of Realism
• Shifted the focus from historical, mythological, or religious subjects to everyday scenes and landscapes
• Emphasized the artist's subjective experience and perception rather than a literal representation
• Captured the changing effects of light and color, which Realism often overlooked
• Embraced modernity and the changing world, while Realism often looked to the past for inspiration
• Paved the way for future avant-garde movements by challenging traditional art norms

Post-Impressionism: Taking It to the Next Level

• Post-Impressionism developed in the late 1880s as a reaction to and extension of Impressionism
• Artists such as Paul Cézanne, Vincent van Gogh, and Paul Gauguin pushed the boundaries of Impressionism
• Focused on expressing emotions, symbolism, and personal experiences through their art
• Used bolder colors, simplified forms, and distorted perspectives to convey inner feelings and ideas
• Cézanne explored the underlying structure and geometry of nature (Mont Sainte-Victoire series)
• Van Gogh used expressive brushstrokes and intense colors to convey his emotional state (The Starry Night; Sunflowers series)
• Gauguin sought to escape modern civilization and find inspiration in primitive cultures (Vision After the Sermon; Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?)

How Society Reacted (Spoiler: They Weren't Always Fans)

• Initially, Impressionism faced harsh criticism and rejection from the art establishment and public
• The Académie des Beaux-Arts, which controlled the official Paris Salon, often rejected Impressionist works
• Critics denounced the loose brushwork, bright colors, and everyday subject matter as unfinished and trivial
• Some viewed Impressionism as a threat to traditional art values and a sign of moral decay
• The Impressionists organized their own independent exhibitions to showcase their work
• Gradually, the public and art collectors began to appreciate and embrace Impressionism
• By the end of the 19th century, Impressionism had gained widespread recognition and influenced a new generation of artists

Legacy and Influence on Modern Art

• Impressionism and Post-Impressionism laid the foundation for numerous modern art movements
• Fauvism, led by Henri Matisse, embraced the use of bold, expressive colors and simplified forms
• Cubism, pioneered by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, deconstructed and reassembled subjects from multiple perspectives
• Expressionism, which included artists like Edvard Munch and Wassily Kandinsky, prioritized emotional expression over realistic representation
• Abstract art, such as the works of Piet Mondrian and Kazimir Malevich, took the simplification of forms to a new level
• Impressionism and Post-Impressionism's emphasis on subjective experience and breaking from tradition paved the way for the radical experimentation of the 20th century avant-garde movements

Cool Facts and Trivia

• The term "Impressionism" was coined by critic Louis Leroy in a satirical review of Monet's painting "Impression, Sunrise"
• Monet's "Haystacks" series consists of 25 canvases depicting the same subject under different light and weather conditions
• Renoir's "Luncheon of the Boating Party" features several of his friends and fellow Impressionists, including Gustave Caillebotte and Aline Charigot (Renoir's future wife)
• Degas was known for his innovative use of pastels, which allowed him to work quickly and capture the essence of movement
• Pissarro was the only artist to exhibit in all eight Impressionist exhibitions held between 1874 and 1886
• Van Gogh's famous "Starry Night" was painted while he was a patient at the Saint-Paul-de-Mausole asylum in France
• Gauguin's travels to Tahiti and other South Pacific islands greatly influenced his use of color, symbolism, and primitive style
• The Impressionists often faced financial struggles, and some, like Monet and Renoir, lived in poverty during the early years of the movement