Impressionism Stream – Impressionism painting is a painting style that presents depictions of objects in accordance with the impression when the object is painted. This art flow emphasizes the impression of lighting that is quite strong compared to forming the object itself.
This picture or painting from the Impressionist school has a simple but slightly dramatic style. Apart from that, this painting also comes with a different perception and point of view compared to other realistic paintings, such as Naturalism and Realism paintings. Impressionism paintings will create a blurry and blurry impression, due to the impression of excessive lighting. The painters will also depict a simple impression compared to what is depicted. Painted objects are made as closely as possible but do not display accurate details.
Definition of Impressionism
Impressionism is one of the currents in painting which tends to emphasize the power of lighting by playing with the colors. In addition, impressionism also focused more on bright lighting, for example, to describe the atmosphere in the morning or afternoon. However, Impressionism tends to pay less attention to the shape of the object. Where the forms in the flow of Impressionism are not clearly described. Even so, the flow of impressionism can still attract art connoisseurs with the power of lighting and bright washes of color.
Generally, painters who are Impressionists use painting techniques with thick and short brushes. So that in his painting it will give an impression that makes it easier for painters and art connoisseurs to guess a shape and object in the painting.
Impressionist artists were strongly against using dark colors, especially black as shadow coloring, because black was not the typical color of Impressionism. So, the shadows can be created using the mixing of complementary colors. Complementary colors are colors that are opposite, which form a 180 degree angle on the color circle or what is commonly called the color wheel. Two different colors will be mixed and will produce complementary colors. That’s the color that will be used in the flow of Impressionism.
Characteristics of Impressionist Painting
Paintings from the Impressionism school are almost the same as paintings from the Naturalism school. This was justified because Impressionist paintings tended to present simple and plain painting objects, such as paintings of the natural surroundings without anything exaggerated or contrived. Then the painted objects are also made as closely as possible but do not depict accurate details like Naturalism paintings. However, Impressionism paintings also seem like paintings from Romanticism and Expressionism schools. This happened because of the impressions and also the impressions shown. So that it becomes one of the highlighted characteristics.
The following are some of the characteristics of Impressionism paintings that need to be understood:
1. Objects in the painting do not display sharp details and only display impressions and show bright color impressions.
2. Have an open composition, both outdoor and indoor painting objects.
3. The color palette used tends to be contrasting and bright based on the color grouping. Short, thick brush strokes that resemble a sketch painting technique. So it creates the essence of the subject rather than the details.
4. Brush marks in paintings tend to be more visible and not covered up. The paint used is not allowed to dry to be overwritten again with the next color.
5. The reflection of light becomes a variety of secondary objects that are more highlighted in this painting.
6. Do not use black and other dark colors on all layers of the painting. When you want to make a shadow of an object, the color choice will use a complementary color that comes from the mixed colors.
7. Often paints natural landscapes and is painted spontaneously in the open by artists.
8. Paintings from the school of Impressionism present a different style of painting on purpose and are based on the tastes of the painters.
History of Impressionism
The flow of Impressionism was present in the 19th century, to be precise in France when there was an artistic rebellion against the construction of standardized art. In 1974, a group of painters held their first exhibition which eventually led to the birth of Impressionism.
The group of painters included Claude Monet, Alfred Sisley, Pierre-Auguste and Frederic Bazille. The four painters have the same interests and art streams, namely painting scenes from contemporary life and are less interested in paintings about historical stories. Until the same year, there was a tradition of holding exhibitions of paintings. Where is one of the works created by Monet and his friends. Which they also have the same flow, always rejected by various curators on the grounds that it displays objects in a center-centric position.
At that time, the term Impressionism meant that Impressionism was a term for cynical comments from critics because their paintings were seen as sketches and looked unfinished. The critic is Louis Leroy, where he wrote his opinion through writing in a French newspaper. With the rejection received by the four painters earlier, this did not make them disappointed but instead made them more active in pursuing the idealism of painting in the Impressionist style so that it would be better known to the world.
The influence of Impressionism does not only exist in painting, but also extends to several other fields such as music and literature. In the field of literature, in 1880 in France there was an Impressionism movement. Where the movement aims to convey an opinion through a gesture compared to a direct statement. Then in the field of music, Impressionism became a style that seemed blurry, because it was caused by the ambiguity of harmony created by the chromatic and pentatonic steps. Music with Impressionism flow can make the atmosphere more impressionistic compared to other musical arts.
In the 19th century, it became historical for the emergence of Impressionism. This art genre was born to bridge the road to a more modern era by presenting diversity and experimentation that had never been done before.
The Influence of Color Theory on the Flow of Impressionism
The flow of Impressionism was influenced by the color theory that was coined by Sir Isaac and also Eugene Chevreul. Where Newton was one of the scientists who first researched the process of forming a color. In the 1671s, he discovered the origin of color when shining light on a prism which then produced rainbow colors. His experiments showed that color is felt and exists in light. Then followed by the theory of color distribution based on prime colors and also the process of mixing them with the aim of forming other colors.
This color grouping ultimately had quite a drastic impact on the works created by Impressionist artists. They abandoned the idea of using black or brown to create a shadow. Instead, Impressionist artists used Newton’s Color Theory to create an image that assumed that black did not actually exist. The black color is just a sign that an object is getting less light. Therefore, they used the opposite color to make the shadow color.
Sunlight actually has a yellow color. Therefore, they use a lot of yellow for human skin color. While the shadow is the opposite color of the reflection of light that touches human skin. Therefore, they used purple as the opposite of yellow to be used as the shadow color.
Characters & Examples of Impressionism Works
It seems incomplete to talk about an art movement without discussing the figures behind the art movement. The following are some of the artists who were quite important and influential in developing the school of Impressionism. In addition, there will be examples of their work and analysis. For those of you who are curious, see the explanation below:
1. Claude Monet
Claude Monet is the originator of the Impressionism movement in France. As a great and inspirational artist, Monet was one of the important figures who formed an independent art group that became the impetus for the birth of Impressionism. Monet himself preferred a style of painting outside, in the open air, and capturing light events at certain times. One of Monet’s works that is quite well-known is the series of paintings that are produced by painting the same scenic object repeatedly at various times, namely morning, afternoon, evening, night.
Water Lilies Impressionism Painting & Its Analysis
Water Lilies is one of the paintings from a series of landscapes of his courtyard which were painted around 1890. Monet depicts the exact same scenery as above at various times, namely morning, noon, evening, until night, just like the other series of paintings. Even though he uses imprecise and fast brush strokes, Monet succeeds in painting the water scene in this painting. Reflections made using semi-abstract indications but work quite effectively. The Water Lilies series is rated as one of the Masterpieces of this one Impressionist Maestro.
2. Berthe Morisot
Berthe Marie Pauline Morisot is a female painter who is a member of the independent painters group founded by Monet. When the exhibition of the two Impressionist groups opened, one art critic referred to the participants as “five or six madmen”. Because, one of them is a woman, namely Morisot. So, Morisot himself has achieved success at a relatively young age of 23 years. As a female painter at that time, Morisot experienced various obstacles because of her gender. Morisot had opportunities that tended to be more limited compared to male artists. Where she is forbidden to pursue the same education as her male friends. Even though, Morisot continues to seek to develop connections and support from family, which will allow her to pursue an independent career as a female artist. Morisot himself has had a successful career as an artist for more than three decades. He successfully wrote his name in the history of French art, even world art.
Eugene Manet and His Daughter at Bougival & Its Analysis
Brush strokes with contrasting colors in seconds can invite our eyes to pay more attention to it. Morisot made the painting above seem to be a camera Snapshot that was taken spontaneously and captured the moment of a father and son enjoying time together. The impression of the portrait is very pronounced and has a more attractive aesthetic when compared to photographic shots. The mood in the painting is very well formed and can provide quite pleasing imagery in what looks like a simple garden around the house.
3. Pierre-Auguste Renoir
Pierre-Auguste Renoir is a French Impressionist artist who has had a major influence on the development of this genre. As one of the artists who focused on beauty, especially feminine beauty, Renoir was said to be one of the last representatives of a tradition that went from Rubens to Watteau. He is the father of actor Pierre Renoir, the filmmaker Jean Renoir and ceramic artist Claude Renoir.
Dance at Le moulin de la Galette & Its Analysis
The painting above is one of the most famous works of painting in Impressionism. Where the painting displays a very typical Sunday afternoon atmosphere at the Moulin de la Galette, Paris. In the late 19th century, workers in Paris would gather and spend time together dancing, drinking and eating until the early hours of the morning. The bustling and boisterous atmosphere in the painting ironically calms the eyes of anyone who sees it. The painting doesn’t seem to have a definite focus, but when we start to look at it more deeply, we won’t be able to stop looking at just one side. Our gaze will lead to various angles of the painting through a dynamic rhythm and culminate in the warm atmosphere of the party.
Types of Impressionism and Examples
There are several other artistic streams apart from fine art which were also influenced by the Impressionism movement, including:
1. Impressionism music
Music with the flow of Impressionism is a movement in European classical music that emerged at the end of the 19th century. This Impressionism music genre has a characteristic suggestive and atmosphere. Not only that, this type of music also avoids the emotional excesses of the Romantic era. The composers of the Impressionist school liked short forms such as nocturnes, preludes, and arabesques. They often explore uncommon scales such as the Whole Scale.
Following are some examples of Impressionism Composers are
Claude Debussy : Clair de Lune
Maurice Ravel : Bolero
2. Literary Impressionism
Literary Impressionism has been influenced by the European Impressionist art movement. Where many writers adopted or imitated styles that tried to incorporate Impressionism in a poem, prose, and other literary works. Various types of literature influenced by Impressionism are Symbolism, which focuses on the perception of certain characters in an event. However, reality is obscured by choosing a viewpoint that is outside the norm.
The following are some examples of Impressionist writers, including:
Stéphane Mallarmé
Joseph Conrad