1. Japonisme and En Plein Air
The Style, Techniques, and Artistic Process of the Impressionists

2. Claude Monet, Impression Sunrise, 1872

3. What are some common formal characteristics of Impressionist works??
lighter/brighter colours
quick, loose brushwork – blurred and it’s better to look at them from a distance
spontaneous
compositions similar to a photograph – cut-off edges
Berthe Morisot, Summer’s Day, 1879

4. Impressionist Technique, Style & Artistic Process
As a style, Impressionism had similarities among the artists BUT it is important to remember that there were differences too (that different types of painting can occur within the practice of an artist at the same time) and they all approached formal characteristics differently
Impressionist artists paid particular attention to depicting the subject in its natural setting – idea of “on the spot painting” outside of the studio
There was an interest in the fleeting moment – the idea that we really can’t know the world and that we can only “know” it through impressions we perceive
There is a real sense of spontaneity – paintings were most often painted (or meant to look like they’d been painted) en plein air – the most true to this practice was Monet
While there was planning and adjusting made in the studio, these artists did paint on the spot as much as possible – where the academic practice was to make “studies outside” and then move into the studio, artists intended to complete finished work out of the confines of the studio
Studio light tends to be carefully planned and controlled which allowed the artist certain liberties in how they represented the subject matter – Impressionists wanted more of the real things they were witnessing in the modern world – not idealism!
On a whole, the Impressionists rejected classical ideals of balanced compositions, idealized figures, and proper perspective

5. Monet, The Bridge Over the Waterlily Pond, 1899

6. The Colour of Light
A note on colour – dabs of colour placed side-by-side to create an “impression” of 3-D form; ideas of “optical mixing” and “broken colours” as form and line almost disappear completely in some of these artists’ works; the use of complementary colours for shadows instead of black
A note on brushwork – tended to be shorter, choppy, loose, not blended or refined
Impressionists like Monet were very interested in how light affects the world around us, how it changes colour

7. Monet’s Haystacks, Series 1890’s

9. Monet, Rouen Cathedral, Series 1890’s
Monet painted some 40 views of Rouen Cathedral at different times of day and under various climactic conditions. The real subject of these paintings is not the building BUT the sunlight shining on them. (Gardner)

10. Renoir, Skaters on the Bois de Boulogne, 1868

11. Manet’s painting of Monet in his studio is a direct reference to…
Painting En Plein Air!!!
Manet, Monet Painting in His Studio Boat, 1874

12. Monet, La Grenouillère, 1869

13. Monet, Houses of Parliament, Sun Breaking Through Fog, 1904

14. Monet, Waterlilies, 1919

15. Degas, Ballet Dancers in the Wings, 1900

16. Here, both paintings by Degas suggest an “in the spur of the moment” situation he has captured. HOWEVER, we must remember that Degas carefully thought about and constructed his compositions too. They are meant to look spontaneous.
Degas, Ballet Rehearsal (Adagio), 1876

17. Influences from the East…
Torii Kiyonaga, Women at Bath, 1780’s

18. Japonisme Meets Impressionism
In 1855, trade opens between Japan and France
In 1867, the Paris International Exposition mounts its first show of Japanese prints
This work begins to appear for sale EVERYWHERE – even in some department stores by 1872 and it is dubbed “Japonisme” by a local art critic
Similar to African art for the Cubists, Japanese art is very influential and “freeing” for the Impressionists
In particular, it is the woodblock prints known as “ukiyo-e” (prints of the “floating world” in the realm of geishas and other popular red-light entertainment) and these prints with their “informal glimpses of contemporary life” helped to reinforce what the Impressionists were doing in Paris
HOWEVER, it was more about the formal characteristics – the “flat, brightly coloured, and sharply outlined edges” with often “expressive and contrasting linear patterns” that really interested the Impressionists and they also liked the off-centered compositions of these prints
In the end, it was for their more “exotic effects” that Japanese prints were most valued

19. What are the similarities & differences between these works??
Van Gogh’s, Japonaiserie: Flowering Plum Tree, 1887
Hiroshige’s Plum Orchard, Kameido, 1857

20. Similarities… a generally flattened tree with asymmetrical branches
Thin, shooting twigs
tiny blossoms in the foreground
smaller trees in the middle ground
several small figures can be seen in the background next to a small hut that’s cut-off at the side
same vibrant and contrasting colour scheme (reds against cooler greens)

21. What Van Gogh has done… BUT, Van Gogh flattens this work much more
For example, the grass is more of a uniform colour, the trees are more outlined in black – not as 3-D looking and the sky is much more thickly painted in red
Van Gogh also used a thick orange frame with “pseudo- Japanese characters” on the outside edges, thus making his work appear more primitive
It is important to note that Van Gogh, like many of this Impressionist counterparts, were not aware of the traditional role of Japanese woodblock – simply appropriated the formal qualities for their work
What Van Gogh has done…

22. Let’s do some more comparisons, shall we!
Mary Cassatt’s, The Bath, 1892
Torii Kiyonaga, Women at Bath, 1780’s (Detail)
Cassatt’s style owed much to the compositional devices of Degas and of Japanese prints, but her subjects differed from those of most Impressionists, in part because, as a woman, she could not frequent cafés. (Gardner)

23. More comparisons… Degas, The Tub, 1886
Kiyonaga, Women at Bath, 1780’s (Detail)
The Tub reveals the influence of Japanese prints, especially the distinctive angles artists such as Tori Kiyonaga used in representing figures. Degas translated his Japanese model into the Impressionist mode.

24. What of the formal characteristics of Japanese woodblock prints do you see in Monet’s painting?

25. What about Cassatt’s Maternal Caress of 1891??