Early Art Impressionism

1
Early ArtImpressionism

• Jessica Staton
• Period 3/4
• August 8th, 2007

Water-Lilies (1906) by Claude Monet
2
When Where It Began

• Started in the 19th Century
• Around the 1860s to 1900s
• Paris, France
• Impression, Sunrise (1873) by Claude Monet

The Water-Lily Pond, Harmony in Green (1899) by
Claude Monet
3
Philosophy

• Called "en plein air (outdoor)
• Break away from the norm
• Capture visual reality
• Spontaneous and informal
• Allowed people to accept the art as an object
  within itself
• Paint outdoors, natural scenery

The Palazzo Dario (1908) by Claude Monet
4
Characteristics

• Looks unfinished
• Shows light and darks changing qualities
• Shows the changes of time
• Short, broken brush strokes
• Open composition
• Unusual angles
• Varied use of color
• Art of immediacy and movement

Lilacs, Grey Weather (1873) by Claude Monet
5
Political Historical Background

• Emperor Napoleon III
• Académie des beaux-arts gave standards for art
• No appreciation for impressionism
• Color was conservative, brush strokes suppressed,
  concealed artist (emotions, personality and
  techniques)
• The Salon rejected many of the art sent to them
• Napoleon III allowed the public to judge their
  work
• The public was unsure at first, then accepting
• Franco-Prussian War (1870)

Houses of Parliament, Sunset (1904) by Claude
Monet
6
Oscar-Claude Monet

• November 14, 1840 Paris, France
• Father was a grocer
• Mother was a singer
• Went to La Havre Secondary school of arts
• Mother died (January 28th, 1857) when he was 16
• Met future wife Camille Doncieux
• Had first child Jean (1867)

Branch of the Seine near Giverny (1897) by Claude
Monet
7
Oscar-Claude Monet (Part 2)

• Painted and sold charcoal caricatures for ten to
  twenty francs
• Attempted suicide by jumping into the Seine
• Financial struggles
• Married Camille Doncieux (1873)
• 2nd son Michel (1878)
• Died of tuberculosis September 5th 1879
• Died of lung cancer (December 5th, 1926)

The Grand Canal (1908) by Claude Monet
8
Impression, Sunrise (1873)

• Beautiful combination of reds and blues
• Strikes me as calm and quiet
• Vibrant contrasts between cool and warm colors
• The boaters stand out well, sun is defined
• Gave Impressionism its name

9
Rouen Cathedral Series

• 13 pieces all-together
• Great show of light contrast and conflicting
  colors
• Wonderful precision in the way he painted the
  architecture
• Accurate
• Gives the sense of solidity and physical
  permanency or immortality

10
Edgar De Gas

• July 19th, 1834 Paris, France
• Father was a banker
• Attended a law school
• Hated it
• Attended an art school
• Loved it
• National Guard
• Refused due to bad eyesight
• Picked up photography for this painting

11
Edgar De Gas

• Father died in 1874
• Brother Rene was in heaps of debt
• Sold art and house to pay it off
• Isolated himself afterwards, selling his work to
  support himself
• Stopped working around 1912
• Nearly blind before death
• Never married and died alone (1917)
• Outlived many of his friends

12
The Bellelli Family (1858-1867)

• Bright colors on the wall and floor that contrast
  (warm and cool)
• Unusual positions of second child and man
• Obvious tension
• Excellent because it holds a hidden message (Men
  vs. Women)

13
Woman with Chrysanthemums (1865)

• So much detail broken up in the impressionist
  style
• Cool colors override the warm ones
• Makes the picture look almost cold
• The main focus is definitely the flowers, though
  they curve against the womans shoulder

14
Thank you