Impressionist portraits. Impressionism style: paintings by famous artists

Impressionism is an art movement that emerged in the second half of the 19th century. His main goal was to convey fleeting, changeable impressions.

The emergence of impressionism is associated with science: with the latest discoveries in optics and color theory.

This trend affected almost all types of art, but it was most clearly manifested in painting, where the transmission of color and light was the basis of the work of impressionist artists.

Meaning of the term

Impressionism(French Impressionnisme) from impression - impression). This style of painting appeared in France in the late 1860s. He was represented by Claude Monet, Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro, Berthe Morisot, Alfred Sisley, Jean Frederic Bazille. But the term itself appeared in 1874, when Monet’s painting “Impression. The Rising Sun" (1872). In the title of the painting, Monet meant that he was conveying only his fleeting impression of the landscape.

K. Monet “Impression. Sunrise" (1872). Marmottan-Monet Museum, Paris
Later, the term “impressionism” in painting began to be understood more broadly: a careful study of nature in terms of color and lighting. The goal of the impressionists was to depict instantaneous, seemingly “random” situations and movements. For this they used various techniques: complex angles, asymmetry, fragmented compositions. For impressionist artists, a painting becomes a frozen moment of a constantly changing world.

Impressionist artistic method

The most popular genres impressionists - landscapes and scenes from city life. They were always painted “in the open air”, i.e. directly from nature, in nature, without sketches or preliminary sketches. The Impressionists noticed and were able to convey colors and shades on canvas that were usually invisible with the naked eye and an inattentive spectator. For example, transfer of blue color in the shadows or pink - at sunset. They decomposed complex tones into their constituent pure colors of the spectrum. This made their paintings appear bright and vibrant. Impressionist artists applied paints in separate strokes, in a free and even careless manner, so their paintings are best viewed from a distance - it is with this view that the effect of living flickering of colors is created.
The Impressionists abandoned the contour, replacing it with small, separate and contrasting strokes.
C. Pissarro, A. Sisley and C. Monet preferred landscapes and city scenes. O. Renoir loved to depict people in the lap of nature or in the interior. French impressionism did not raise philosophical and social problems. They did not turn to biblical, literary, mythological, historical subjects that were inherent in official academicism. Instead, an image of everyday life and modernity appeared on paintings; an image of people in motion, while relaxing or having fun. Their main subjects are flirting, dancing, people in cafes and theaters, boat rides, beaches and gardens.
The impressionists tried to capture a fleeting impression, minute changes in each subject depending on the lighting and time of day. In this regard, Monet’s cycles of paintings “Haystacks”, “Rouen Cathedral” and “Parliament of London” can be considered the highest achievement.

C. Monet “The Cathedral of Rouen in the Sun” (1894). Orsay Museum, Paris, France
“Rouen Cathedral” is a cycle of 30 paintings by Claude Monet, which represent views of the cathedral depending on the time of day, year and lighting. This cycle was painted by the artist in the 1890s. The cathedral allowed him to show the relationship between the constant, solid structure of the building and the changing, easily playing light that changes our perception. Monet concentrates on individual fragments of the Gothic cathedral and selects the portal, the tower of St. Martin and the tower of Alban. He is solely interested in the play of light on the stone.

K. Monet “Rouen Cathedral, Western Portal, Foggy Weather” (1892). Orsay Museum, Paris

K. Monet “Rouen Cathedral, portal and tower, morning effect; white harmony" (1892-1893). Orsay Museum, Paris

K. Monet “Rouen Cathedral, portal and tower in the sun, harmony of blue and gold” (1892-1893). Orsay Museum, Paris
Following France, impressionist artists appeared in England and the USA (James Whistler), in Germany (Max Liebermann, Lovis Corinth), in Spain (Joaquin Sorolla), in Russia (Konstantin Korovin, Valentin Serov, Igor Grabar).

About the work of some impressionist artists

Claude Monet (1840-1926)

Claude Monet, photograph 1899
French painter, one of the founders of impressionism. Born in Paris. He was fond of drawing since childhood, and at the age of 15 he showed himself to be a talented caricaturist. TO landscape painting he was introduced by Eugene Boudin - French artist, predecessor of impressionism. Later, Monet entered the university at the Faculty of Arts, but became disillusioned and left it, enrolling in the painting studio of Charles Gleyre. In the studio he met the artists Auguste Renoir, Alfred Sisley and Frédéric Bazille. They were practically peers, held similar views on art, and soon formed the backbone of the impressionist group.
Monet became famous for his portrait of Camille Doncieux, painted in 1866 (“Camille, or Portrait of a Lady in a Green Dress”). Camilla became the artist's wife in 1870.

C. Monet “Camille” (“Lady in Green”) (1866). Kunsthalle, Bremen

C. Monet “Walk: Camille Monet with her son Jean (Woman with an Umbrella)” (1875). National Gallery art, Washington
In 1912, doctors diagnosed C. Monet with double cataracts, and he had to undergo two operations. Having lost the lens in his left eye, Monet regained his sight, but began to see ultraviolet light as blue or purple, causing his paintings to take on new colors. For example, when painting the famous “Water Lilies,” Monet saw the lilies as bluish in the ultraviolet range; to other people they were simply white.

C. Monet “Water Lilies”
The artist died on December 5, 1926 in Giverny and was buried in the local church cemetery.

Camille Pissarro (1830-1903)

C. Pissarro “Self-Portrait” (1873)

French painter, one of the first and most consistent representatives of impressionism.
Born on the island of St. Thomas (West Indies), in a bourgeois family of a Sephardic Jew and a native Dominican Republic. He lived in the West Indies until he was 12 years old, and at the age of 25 he and his entire family moved to Paris. I studied at school here fine arts and at the Suisse Academy. His teachers were Camille Corot, Gustave Courbet and Charles-François Daubigny. Started with rural landscapes and views of Paris. Pissarro had a strong influence on the Impressionists, independently developing many of the principles that formed the basis of their painting style. He was friends with the artists Degas, Cezanne and Gauguin. Pizarro was the only participant in all 8 Impressionist exhibitions.
He died in 1903 in Paris. He was buried in the Père Lachaise cemetery.
Already in his early works the artist Special attention paid attention to the image of illuminated objects in air environment. Light and air have since become the leading theme in Pissarro's work.

C. Pissarro “Boulevard Montmartre. Afternoon, sunny" (1897)
in 1890, Pizarro became interested in the technique of pointillism (separate application of strokes). But after a while he returned to his usual manner.
IN last years During his life, Camille Pissarro's vision noticeably deteriorated. But he continued his work and created a series of views of Paris, filled with artistic emotions.

C. Pissarro “Street in Rouen”
The unusual angle of some of his paintings is explained by the fact that the artist painted them from hotel rooms. This series became one of highest achievements impressionism in the transmission of light and atmospheric effects.
Pissarro also painted in watercolors and created a series of etchings and lithographs.
Here are a few of him interesting statements about the art of impressionism: “The Impressionists are on the right track, their art is healthy, it is based on sensations and it is honest.”
“Happy is he who can see the beauty in ordinary things, where others see nothing!”

C. Pissarro “The First Frost” (1873)

Russian impressionism

Russian impressionism developed from late XIX-beginning of the 20th century It was influenced by the work of the French impressionists. But Russian impressionism has a pronounced national specifics and in many ways does not coincide with textbook ideas about classical French impressionism. In the painting of Russian impressionists, objectivity and materiality prevail. It is more loaded with meaning and less dynamic. Russian impressionism is closer than French to realism. The French impressionists focused on the impression of what they saw, and the Russians also added a display internal state artist. The work had to be completed in one session.
A certain incompleteness of Russian impressionism creates the “thrill of life” that was characteristic of them.
Impressionism includes the work of Russian artists: A. Arkhipov, I. Grabar, K. Korovin, F. Malyavin, N. Meshcherin, A. Murashko, V. Serov, A. Rylov and others.

V. Serov “Girl with Peaches” (1887)

This painting is considered the standard of Russian impressionism in portraiture.

Valentin Serov “Girl with Peaches” (1887). Canvas, oil. 91×85 cm. State Tretyakov Gallery
The painting was painted at the estate of Savva Ivanovich Mamontov in Abramtsevo, which he acquired from the daughter of the writer Sergei Aksakov in 1870. The portrait depicts 12-year-old Vera Mamontova. The girl is drawn sitting at a table; she is wearing a pink blouse with a dark blue bow; there is a knife, peaches and leaves on the table.
“All I was striving for was freshness, that special freshness that you always feel in nature and don’t see in paintings. I painted for more than a month and exhausted her, poor thing, to death; I really wanted to preserve the freshness of the painting while being completely complete, just like the old masters” (V. Serov).

Impressionism in other forms of art

In literature

In literature, impressionism as a separate movement did not develop, but its features were reflected in naturalism And symbolism .

Edmond and Jules Goncourt. Photo
Principles naturalism can be traced in the novels of the Goncourt brothers and George Eliot. But he was the first to use the term “naturalism” to designate own creativity Emile Zola. The writers Guy de Maupassant, Alphonse Daudet, Huysmans and Paul Alexis grouped around Zola. After the release of the collection “Medan Evenings” (1880), with frank stories about the disasters of the Franco-Prussian War (including Maupassant’s story “Dumpling”), the name “Medan group” was assigned to them.

Emile Zola
The naturalistic principle in literature has often been criticized for its lack of artistry. For example, I. S. Turgenev wrote about one of Zola’s novels that “there is a lot of digging in chamber pots.” Gustave Flaubert was also critical of naturalism.
Zola maintained friendly relations with many impressionist artists.
Symbolists used symbols, understatement, hints, mystery, enigma. The main mood captured by the symbolists was pessimism, reaching the point of despair. Everything “natural” was represented only as an “appearance” that had no independent artistic significance.
Thus, impressionism in literature was expressed by the author’s private impression, the rejection of an objective picture of reality, and the depiction of every moment. In fact, this led to the absence of plot and history, the replacement of thought with perception, and reason with instinct.

G. Courbet “Portrait of P. Verlaine” (circa 1866)
A striking example of poetic impressionism is Paul Verlaine’s collection “Romances without Words” (1874). In Russia, Konstantin Balmont and Innokenty Annensky experienced the influence of impressionism.

V. Serov “Portrait of K. Balmont” (1905)

Innokenty Annensky. Photo
These sentiments also affected dramaturgy. The plays contain a passive perception of the world, analysis of moods, states of mind. The dialogues concentrate fleeting, scattered impressions. These features are characteristic of the work of Arthur Schnitzler.

In music

Musical impressionism developed in France in the last quarter of the 19th century. – early 20th century He expressed himself most clearly in the works of Erik Satie, Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel.

Erik Satie
Musical impressionism is close to impressionism in French painting. They not only have common roots, but also cause-and-effect relationships. Impressionist composers sought and found not only analogies, but also expressive means in the works of Claude Monet, Paul Cezanne, Puvis de Chavannes and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. Of course, the means of painting and the means of musical art can be connected with each other only with the help of special, subtle associative parallels that exist only in the mind. Looking at the blurry image of Paris "in autumn rain” and the same sounds, “muffled by the noise of falling drops,” then here we can only talk about the property artistic image, but not the real image.

Claude Debussy
Debussy writes "Clouds", "Prints" (the most figurative of which, a watercolor sound sketch - "Gardens in the Rain"), "Images", "Reflections on the Water", which evoke direct associations with famous painting Claude Monet "Impression: Sunrise". According to Mallarmé, impressionist composers learned to “hear light”, to convey in sounds the movement of water, the vibration of leaves, the blowing of wind and refraction sun rays in the evening air.

Maurice Ravel
Direct connections between painting and music exist in M. Ravel in his sound-visual “Play of Water”, the cycle of plays “Reflections”, and the piano collection “Rustles of the Night”.
The Impressionists created works of refined art and at the same time clear in expressive means, emotionally restrained, conflict-free and strict in style.

In sculpture

O. Rodin “The Kiss”

Impressionism in sculpture was expressed in free plasticity soft forms, which creates challenging game light on the surface of the material and a feeling of incompleteness. The poses of the sculptural characters capture the moment of movement and development.

O. Rodin. Photo from 1891
This direction includes sculptural works by O. Rodin (France), Medardo Rosso (Italy), P.P. Trubetskoy (Russia).

V. Serov “Portrait of Paolo Trubetskoy”

Pavel (Paolo) Trubetskoy(1866-1938) – sculptor and artist, worked in Italy, USA, England, Russia and France. Born in Italy. Illegitimate son Russian emigrant, Prince Pyotr Petrovich Trubetskoy.
Since childhood, I have been independently engaged in sculpture and painting. He had no education. In the initial period of his creativity, he created portrait busts, works of small sculpture, and participated in competitions for the creation of large sculptures.

P. Trubetskoy “Monument Alexander III", Saint Petersburg
The first exhibition of works by Paolo Trubetskoy took place in the USA in 1886. In 1899, the sculptor came to Russia. Takes part in a competition to create a monument to Alexander III and, unexpectedly for everyone, receives first prize. This monument has caused and continues to cause conflicting assessments. It is difficult to imagine a more static and ponderous monument. And only a positive assessment of the imperial family allowed the monument to take its appropriate place - in sculptural image found similarities with the original.
Critics believed that Trubetskoy worked in the spirit of “outdated impressionism.”

Trubetskoy’s image of the brilliant Russian writer turned out to be more “impressionistic”: there is clearly movement here - in the folds of the shirt, the flowing beard, the turn of the head, there is even a feeling that the sculptor managed to capture the tension of L. Tolstoy’s thought.

P. Trubetskoy “Bust of Leo Tolstoy” (bronze). State Tretyakov Gallery

Impressionism is often considered precisely as a movement in painting that originated in the 19th century in France. Impressionism brought a double revolution, which is simultaneously reflected in the vision of the world and painting technique. He shows the painting as moving, ephemeral, elusive, focusing on the passing moment in the present tense. In addition, impressionism is characterized by light, touch, and color vibration.

Prominent representatives modern impressionism in painting many, but in this publication we will focus on four artists - Andre Kohn (Russia), Laurent Parcelier (France), Diane Leonard and Karen Tarlton (USA)- each of which owns unique technology in painting.

Andre Kohn- comes from Volgograd, Russian Federation. From the age of 15 he began to seriously study painting under the guidance of Natalia Gavrichenko and Anatoly Vrubel. Since the artist deserved high praise in oil painting from his Western colleagues, he migrated to America. On this moment lives with his family in Phoenix. The artist’s paintings are in corporate, museum and private collections in Europe, Canada, USA, Japan, Australia and Russia.

Andre Cohn is a recognized leader in the field of modern impressionism. With a mature and fresh imaginative style, he always creates the extraordinary out of the ordinary. The artist's objects are interpreted through the poetry of movement. In the American arena, the impressionist Andre Kohn is considered one of the most interesting figures.

Modern French impressionism in painting Laurent Parcelier

Laurent Parcelier- maestro of watercolor, modern French impressionist. Characteristic of Porcellier's work is the clean and bright manner of conveying the places where the artist himself visited. the artist shines with light, brightness, impression. The author's strokes and tones are unique to him alone.

Contemporary American impressionism in painting Diane Leonard

Contemporary impressionist artist Karen Tarlton

Karen is a current expert in impressionist palette knife painting. He often paints landscapes and portraits. Currently lives and works in Manhattan Beach, California.

Impressionism is a movement in painting that originated in France in XIX-XX centuries, which is an artistic attempt to capture some moment of life in all its variability and mobility. Impressionist paintings are like a well-washed photograph, reviving in fantasy the continuation of the story seen. In this article we will look at the 10 most famous impressionists in the world. Fortunately, talented artists much more than ten, twenty or even a hundred, so let's focus on those names that you definitely need to know.

In order not to offend either the artists or their admirers, the list is given in Russian alphabetical order.

1. Alfred Sisley

This French painter English origin considered the most famous landscape painter second half of the 19th century century. His collection contains more than 900 paintings, of which the most famous are “Rural Alley”, “Frost in Louveciennes”, “Bridge in Argenteuil”, “Early Snow in Louveciennes”, “Lawns in Spring”, and many others.

2. Van Gogh

Known around the world sad story about his ear (by the way, he did not cut off his entire ear, but only the lobe), Wang Gon became popular only after his death. And during his life he was able to sell one single painting, 4 months before his death. They say he was both an entrepreneur and a priest, but often ended up in psychiatric hospitals due to depression, so all the rebellion of his existence resulted in legendary works.

3. Camille Pissarro

Pissarro was born on the island of St. Thomas, into a family of bourgeois Jews, and was one of the few impressionists whose parents encouraged his passion and soon sent him to Paris to study. Most of all, the artist liked nature, he depicted it in all colors, and to be more precise, Pissarro had a special talent for choosing the softness of colors, compatibility, after which air seemed to appear in the paintings.

4. Claude Monet

Since childhood, the boy decided that he would become an artist, despite family prohibitions. Having moved to Paris on his own, Claude Monet plunged into the gray everyday life of a hard life: two years of service in the armed forces in Algeria, litigation with creditors due to poverty and illness. However, one gets the feeling that the difficulties did not oppress, but, on the contrary, inspired the artist to create such bright pictures, like “Impression, Sunrise”, “Houses of Parliament in London”, “Bridge to Europe”, “Autumn in Argenteuil”, “On the Shores of Trouville”, and many others.

5. Konstantin Korovin

It's nice to know that among the French, the parents of impressionism, we can proudly place our compatriot, Konstantin Korovin. passionate love to nature helped him intuitively give unimaginable liveliness to a static picture, thanks to the connection suitable colors, width of strokes, choice of theme. It is impossible to pass by his paintings “Pier in Gurzuf”, “Fish, Wine and Fruit”, “ Autumn landscape», « Moonlight night. Winter" and a series of his works dedicated to Paris.

6. Paul Gauguin

Until the age of 26, Paul Gauguin did not even think about painting. He was an entrepreneur and had big family. However, when I first saw the paintings of Camille Pissarro, I decided that I would definitely start painting. Over time, the artist’s style changed, but the most famous impressionistic paintings are “Garden in the Snow”, “At the Cliff”, “On the Beach in Dieppe”, “Nude”, “Palm Trees in Martinique” and others.

7. Paul Cezanne

Cezanne, unlike most of his colleagues, became famous during his lifetime. He managed to organize his own exhibition and earn considerable income from it. People knew a lot about his paintings - he, like no one else, learned to combine the play of light and shadow, placed a loud emphasis on right and wrong geometric shapes, the severity of the themes of his paintings was in harmony with romance.

8. Pierre Auguste Renoir

Until the age of 20, Renoir worked as a fan decorator for his older brother, and only then moved to Paris, where he met Monet, Basil and Sisley. This acquaintance helped him in the future to take the path of impressionism and become famous on it. Renoir is known as the author of sentimental portraits, among his most outstanding works- “On the Terrace”, “Walk”, “Portrait of the Actress Jeanne Samary”, “The Lodge”, “Alfred Sisley and His Wife”, “On the Swing”, “Splash Pool” and many others.

9. Edgar Degas

If you haven't heard of Blue Dancers, Ballet Rehearsal, Ballet school" and "Absinthe" - hurry up to learn about the work of Edgar Degas. The selection of original colors, unique themes for paintings, a sense of movement of the picture - all this and much more made Degas one of the most famous artists peace.

10. Edouard Manet

Don't confuse Manet with Monet - they are two different people, who worked at the same time and in the same artistic direction. Manet was always attracted to scenes of everyday life, unusual appearance and types, as if accidentally “caught” moments, subsequently captured for centuries. Among Manet’s famous paintings: “Olympia”, “Luncheon on the Grass”, “Bar at the Folies Bergere”, “The Flutist”, “Nana” and others.

If you have even the slightest opportunity to see the paintings of these masters live, you will forever fall in love with impressionism!

Alexandra Skripkina,

Now they are offering sky-high sums for their work, now they are canon and dogma, but when the 19th century had only crossed half of its path, everything turned out badly at first. Impressionism and paintings by young artists served as a reason for scandals and general ridicule.

The Canon, Painting and the Paris Salon

In those days, there were strict rules for painters in France. A professional jury carefully selected works for exhibitions at the famous Salon. Encouraged to follow academic art, classical stories, foundations and norms. The bourgeois Salon opened up a rosy path to the future, which meant the favor of the older generation of artists, attention from the press, and popularity among customers. A Salon award is a path to fame, rejected work is blasphemy, scandal, food for attacks by journalists and poverty. What if you are young and daring, but are tired of painting portraits of nobles and hackneyed subjects? If you have a calling to paint differently because you see differently, what should you do?

Les Miserables

In 1863, the jury rejected so many paintings that Emperor Napoleon III became suspicious and proposed an alternative. The Salon of the Rejected has opened. The crowd of spectators came to see the outlandish exhibition and continued to laugh. Stereotypes do not disappear on their own, they are broken, and this takes time...

A small group of artists rebelled against dead dogmas and conservatism. The young creative generation was puzzled by the search for new venues for exhibitions, and spent hours discussing the tasks and goals of painting in the famous Guerbois cafe. Later, each of the painters would go their own way, but for now they were united by common goals and objectives: to break through, gain recognition, and develop a common theoretical platform.

And here was the first serious independent step - the spring of 1873, an exhibition in the studio of the photographer Nadar. 30 artists presented 165 works to the sophisticated public... And again bewilderment! Viewers are surprised by the style of painting: the abruptness of the strokes, the blurred contours, the unusual color scheme, as if the artist is in a hurry. In the works one can see negligence, incompleteness, understatement. The close attention to the plein air, where air, shadow and partial shade reign, and the street episode is striking. The creators' gaze is focused on the moment of being. All this causes sharp criticism and misunderstanding. Rebels are accused of immorality and unprincipledness. Moreover, they dare to rethink the unshakable values ​​of art: they depict the life of the street, square, and the life of ordinary people! All this, in the opinion of ordinary bourgeois and aristocrats, is wrong, petty and everyday.

Oil Paintings. Impressionism Monet

Monet calls his new canvas “Impression. Sunrise". Some journalist takes it out of context: impressionism, paintings, impressions. The general tone of the statements, as usual, is dismissive and ironic. Artists accept the challenge and call the new movement this supposedly mocking word.

Impressionism flourished in the 70s and 80s. Its most prominent representatives are Claude Monet, Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro, Alfred Sisley and many others.

Edouard Manet in the enemy's camp

Paintings in the impressionist style of Edouard Manet constantly caused bewilderment among the public. He, like no one else, knew how to provoke high-profile scandals, although he himself was a product of the same environment that fiercely attacked him. Manet was well brought up, educated, inherited a fortune that gave him the opportunity not to worry about his daily bread. The painting “An Incident at a Bullfight” was so mercilessly attacked by the press that the painter’s nerves gave way and he tore up the work. His paintings “Olympia” and “Breakfast on the Grass” caused severe public rejection.

Personal exhibition organized in the pavilion of the Parisian World Exhibition of 1867 at own funds, was completely booed. Young Emile Zola is almost the only one who came out in defense. It was he who first expressed his thoughts out loud about the artist’s innovation, presciently declaring that his paintings belonged in the Louvre itself. Edouard Manet never exhibited with fellow impressionists; he believed that his battlefield was the notorious Salon. Apparently, because he was not afraid to dictate his own laws in a foreign monastery, he suffered so much from critics.

Camille Pissarro: air, plein air and impressionism

Camille Pissarro believed that the main thing in painting is air. Thin, transparent, breathing light, fogs, rains and their premonition. The air on his canvases is almost tangible. Pissarro entered the history of art as a singer of Paris and Rouen, rural and urban landscapes. The artist is considered one of the ideologists of impressionism. His friends are the great masters Cezanne, Degas, Gauguin. His life was not simple: he was in need, was happily married, had many children and was fanatically devoted to art. He was saved from poverty by a small garden in which his household grew vegetables and sold them in Paris. Only 5 years before the artist’s death, the family settled within the city on Rivoli Street, in a house overlooking the Louvre.

Pissarro was fascinated by the picturesque views of Rouen Cathedral painted by Claude Monet. He goes to the city and paints his Rouen, its streets and embankments. This is how one of his paintings “Rue Episérie, Rouen” appears (effect sunlight)" (1898). This work is considered to be the most successful, where the lively movement of the market is embodied on canvas against the backdrop of swift church spiers stretching into a clear, as if washed, sky. The festive movement of the crowd, the bright color spots of the roofs, and their pile-up create a rich polyphony, rhythm and sound of colors.

Amazing tube of paint

Why is this group of artists so persistent in turning to plein air? Are there really others? talented craftsmen didn't think of it? It turns out that the new ideology of art is determined by technical progress. Plein air became possible thanks to the invention of the paint tube. The paint in the lead tube can now be capped and set aside. It will not dry out and will be suitable for future use. The artist can not limit himself only to working indoors, but also paint on fresh air! This is a breakthrough! Now almost anything can become a subject of art. Auguste Renoir wrote that thanks to this invention, impressionism began to sparkle with new facets. The paintings of innovative artists would not have come to life without progress.

Claude Monet and Rouen Cathedral: impressionism, paintings, photos

If we mentioned the French city of Rouen in the works of two great artists, then we cannot fail to mention the “Rouen Cathedral” series by Claude Monet, which became a grandiose artistic epic at the end of the century. Monet got the idea to paint a majestic Gothic structure (at that time the tallest cathedral in the world) in different times year, at different moments of daylight.

He worked on the masterpiece for more than 2 years since 1892. Monet watched the building and the changes taking place around it almost around the clock in a rented apartment overlooking the cathedral. At the same time, the master worked on several canvases: he was confused, dissatisfied, constantly destroyed what he had written, took up the canvas again, left, returned, changed housing, painted until exhaustion and bouts of insomnia. The idea devoured him... Art critics believe that the artist introduced a fourth - time - into painting, which usually deals with three dimensions. If you suddenly need to name famous paintings of impressionism as a movement, then this series is the most monumental. The artist planned to sell the entire series into one person, but since the price was prohibitively high at that time, the paintings became the property of different collectors.

Russian impressionists

The new trend found a response in Russia. Contemporaries recall that young Konstantin Korovin was confused by a simple question from his teacher, the artist Polenov. The word “impressionism” and paintings by French painters of that time (this is what Polenov asked about) were unknown to him. For the first time, Korovin will be in Paris at the age of 27, he will see a style of writing that is close to him and will finally calm down - he is right and not alone! The work “Spanish Women Leonora and Ampara” is kept in Tretyakov Gallery. At one time, the artist was paid for the painting with a coat worth 25 rubles. Similar case in the history of painting is far from unique. Konstantin Korovin, his friend Valentin Serov and artist Igor Grabar - prominent representatives impressionism in Russia at the end of the 19th century.

For our difficult era, which combines various styles and movements in art, the concept of “modern impressionism” and paintings by artists in this genre are more of a glorious past than the present. Unfortunately, there are no world-famous names of people working in this style now. Impressionism is a path that painting has already taken, and it is easy to follow the beaten path.

Impressionism (impressionnisme) is a style of painting that appeared at the end of the 19th century in France and then spread throughout the world. The very idea of ​​impressionism lies in its name: impression - impression. Artists who are tired of traditional techniques Academic paintings, which, in their opinion, did not convey all the beauty and liveliness of the world, began to use completely new techniques and methods of depiction, which were supposed to express in the most accessible form not a “photographic” appearance, but rather the impression of what was seen. In his painting, the impressionist artist uses the character of strokes and color palette tries to convey the atmosphere, warmth or cold, strong wind or peaceful silence, a foggy rainy morning or a bright sunny afternoon, as well as his personal experiences from what he saw.

Impressionism is a world of feelings, emotions and fleeting impressions. What is valued here is not external realism or naturalness, but rather the realism of the expressed sensations, the internal state of the picture, its atmosphere, and depth. Initially, this style was subject to strong criticism. The first Impressionist paintings were exhibited at the Parisian “Salon of Les Misérables,” where works by artists rejected by the official Paris Salon of Arts were exhibited. The term “impressionism” was first used by critic Louis Leroy, who wrote a disparaging review in the magazine “Le Charivari” about an exhibition of artists. As the basis for the term, he took Claude Monet’s painting “Impression. Rising Sun". He called all the artists impressionists, which can be roughly translated as “impressionists.” At first, the paintings were indeed criticized, but soon more and more fans of the new art direction began to come to the salon, and the genre itself turned from a rejected one to a recognized one.

It is worth noting that artists of the late 19th century in France did not come up with a new style empty space. They took as a basis the techniques of painters of the past, including artists of the Renaissance. Painters such as El Greco, Velazquez, Goya, Rubens, Turner and others, long before the emergence of impressionism, tried to convey the mood of a picture, the liveliness of nature, the special expressiveness of the weather with the help of various intermediate tones, bright or, on the contrary, dull strokes that looked like abstract things. They used it quite sparingly in their paintings, so unusual technique did not catch the viewer's eye. The Impressionists decided to take these image methods as the basis for their works.

One more specific feature The works of the impressionists are a kind of superficial everydayness, which, however, contains incredible depth. They do not try to express any deep philosophical themes, mythological or religious problems, historical and important events. The paintings of artists of this movement are inherently simple and everyday - landscapes, still lifes, people walking down the street or going about their normal business, and so on. It is precisely such moments, where there is no excessive thematic content that distracts a person, that feelings and emotions from what they see come to the fore. Also, the impressionists, at least at the beginning of their existence, did not depict “heavy” themes - poverty, wars, tragedies, suffering, and so on. Impressionist paintings are most often the most positive and joyful works, where there is a lot of light, bright colors, smoothed light and shade, smooth contrasts. Impressionism is a pleasant impression, joy from life, the beauty of every moment, pleasure, purity, sincerity.

The most famous impressionists were such great artists as Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, Alfred Sisley, Camille Pissarro and many others.

Don't know where to buy a real jaw's harp? Most big choice you can find it on the website khomus.ru. Wide range of ethnic musical instruments in Moscow.

Alfred Sisley - Lawns in Spring

Camille Pissarro - Boulevard Montmartre. Afternoon, sunny.