From Impressionism to Modernism

Claude Monet - Blue Water Lilies - Between 1916 and 1919 - Oil on canvas - H. 200; W. 200 cm - Paris, Musée d’Orsay (click photo for larger image)French Impressionist Claude Monet (1840-1926) grew white water lilies in the water garden he had installed in his property at Giverny in 1893. From the 1910s until his death, the garden and its pond were the artist's sole source of inspiration. He said: "I have come back to things that are impossible to do: water with weeds waving in the depths. Apart from painting and gardening, I am good for nothing. My greatest masterpiece is my garden.” Monet was not the greatest artistic technician nor was he particularly intellectual. However, he had a vision—to paint what he saw as he saw it—and he remained dedicated to this obsession throughout his life. It was once believed that the very loose, free brushwork of his later years was a sign of old age. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, Monet’s work was becoming more abstract. This great artist contributed for more to modernism than is generally believed. 

Johan Barthold Jongkind

Johan Barthold Jongkind - In Holland; Boats near the Mill, 1868, Musée d'Orsay, Paris (click photo for larger image)Dutch Impressionist painter Johan Barthold Jongkind (1819-1891) painted marine landscapes (in both Holland and France) in a free manner and is regarded as a forerunner of Impressionism. His paintings are characterized by vigorous brushwork and strong contrasts. Like the 17th-century Dutch landscape painters, he typically composed his landscapes with a low horizon, allowing the sky to dominate.

Norwegian Impressionist Harriet Backer

Harriet Backer - Blue Interior - 1883 - Oil on canvas - 66 x 84 cm - The National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design, Norway (click photo for larger image)Born to an affluent family in Norway, Harriet Backer (1845 - 1932) achieved recognition in her own time for her work, and was also a noteworthy pioneer among female artists in the Nordic countries, as well as in Europe. Her detailed interior scenes, rendered in rich colors and characterized by moody lighting are her most famous works. Impressionism took many different forms. Backer’s work is much more similar to artists like Mary Cassatt then it is to such artists as Monet and Renoir, given its structured approach.

Marie Bracquemond: A French Impressionist

Marie Bracquemond - On the Terrace at Sèvres - 1880 - Oil on canvas - Musée du Petit Palais, GenevaMarie Bracquemond (1841-1916) was the wife of a well regarded etcher and lithographer, Félix Bracquemond. Marie was something of a recluse, and many of her finest works, such as On the Terrace at Sèvres, featured here, were painted in her own garden. Despite her shyness, Maria was a vocal as well as an enthusiastic supporter of Impressionist doctrines. However, she did not handle criticism of her own art well and therefore often refrained from showing it to anyone. Nevertheless, Marie’s work was included in the Impressionist exhibitions of 1879, 1880 and 1886. Both her husband and her son, Pierre, were somewhat jealous of her achievements--although her son was one of her staunchest supporters.

Gustave Caillebotte: A Unique Synthesis of Academic and Impressionist Approaches

Gustave Caillebotte - The Floor Scrapers - 1875 - Oil on canvas - H. 102; W. 146.5 cm - Musée d’Orsay (click photo for larger image)French painter Gustave Caillebotte (1848-1894) was a member and patron of the Impressionist group, though he painted in a much more realistic manner than other of the movement’s artists. The painting featured here is one of the first representations of urban proletariat. although peasants or country workers had often been shown, city workers had seldom been painted. Unlike such artists as Courbet or Millet, Caillebotte does not incorporate any social, moralizing or political message in his work. He just paints it like it is!