Paintings by contemporary impressionist artists. The world through the eyes of the Impressionists, paintings by famous artists

Impressionism (from the French " impression"- impression) is a trend in art (literature, painting, architecture), it appeared at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century in France and quickly became widespread in other countries of the world. Followers of the new direction, who believed that academic, traditional techniques, for example, in painting or architecture, cannot fully convey the fullness and the smallest details of the surrounding world, switched to the use of completely new techniques and methods, first of all in painting, then in literature and music. They made it possible to depict all the mobility and variability of the real world most vividly and naturally by conveying not its photographic appearance, but through the prism of the authors' impressions and emotions about what they saw.

The author of the term "impressionism" is considered to be the French critic and journalist Louis Leroy, who, under the impression of visiting the exhibition of a group of young artists "Salon of the Outcasts" in 1874 in Paris, calls them impressionists in his feuilleton, a kind of "impressionists", and this statement is somewhat dismissive and ironic nature. Basis for the name this term was the painting by Claude Monet seen by the critic “Impression. Rising Sun". And although at first many of the paintings in this exhibition were sharply criticized and rejected, later this direction received wider recognition from the public and became popular all over the world.

Impressionism in painting

(Claude Monet "Boats on the Beach")

The new style, manner and technique of depiction were not invented by French Impressionist artists from scratch, it was based on the experience and achievements of the most talented painters of the Renaissance: Rubens, Velasquez, El Greco, Goya. From them, the Impressionists took such methods of brighter and more vivid transmission of the surrounding world or expressiveness. weather conditions as the use of intermediate tones, the use of the technique of bright or vice versa dull strokes, large or small, characterized by abstractness. Adherents of the new direction in painting either completely abandoned the traditional academic manner of drawing, or completely remade the methods and methods of depiction in their own way, introducing such innovations as:

• Objects, objects or figures were depicted without a contour, it was replaced by small and contrasting strokes;
• A palette was not used for mixing colors, colors were selected that complemented each other and did not require merging. Sometimes the paint was squeezed onto the canvas directly from a metal tube, forming a pure, sparkling color with a brushstroke effect;
• The practical absence of black;
• The canvases were mostly painted in the open air, from nature, in order to more vividly and expressively convey their emotions and impressions of what they saw;
• The use of paints with high covering power;
• Applying fresh strokes directly to the still wet surface of the canvas;
• Creation of cycles of paintings in order to study changes in light and shadow (Claude Monet's "Haystacks");
• Lack of depiction of acute social, philosophical or religious issues, historical or significant events. The works of the Impressionists are filled with positive emotions, there is no place for gloom and heavy thoughts, there is only lightness, joy and beauty of every moment, sincerity of feelings and frankness of emotions.

(Edouard Manet "Reading")

And although not all artists of this direction adhered to particular accuracy in performing all the exact features of the impressionism style (Edouard Manet positioned himself as a separate artist and never participated in joint exhibitions (there were 8 in total from 1874 to 1886). Edgar Degas worked only in his own workshop) this did not prevent them from creating masterpieces of fine art, which are still stored in best museums and private collections around the world.

Russian Impressionist painters

Impressed by the creative ideas of the French Impressionists, Russian artists at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century created their original masterpieces of fine art, later known under the general name "Russian Impressionism".

(V. A. Serov "Girl with peaches")

Its most prominent representatives are Konstantin Korovin (“Portrait of a Chorus Girl”, 1883, “Northern Idyll”, 1886), Valentin Serov (“Open Window. Lilac”, 1886, “Girl with Peaches”, 1887), Arkhip Kuindzhi ( "North", 1879, "Dnepr in the morning" 1881), Abram Arkhipov ("North Sea", "Landscape. Study with a log house"), "late" impressionist Igor Grabar ("Birch Alley", 1940, "Winter Landscape" , 1954).

(Borisov-Musatov "Autumn Song")

The methods and manner of depiction inherent in impressionism took place in the work of such outstanding Russian artists as Borisov-Musatov, Bogdanov Belsky, Nilus. The classical canons of French impressionism in the paintings of Russian artists have undergone some changes, as a result of which this direction has acquired an original national specificity.

Foreign Impressionists

One of the first works made in the style of impressionism is the painting by Edouard Manet "Breakfast on the Grass", exhibited to the public in 1860 in the Paris Salon of the Rejected, where canvases that did not pass the selection of the Paris Salon of Arts could be dismantled. The painting, painted in a style that was radically different from the traditional manner of depiction, caused a lot of criticism and rallied the followers of the new artistic direction around the artist.

(Edouard Manet "In Papa Lathuille's Tavern")

The most famous impressionist artists include Edouard Manet ("Bar at the Folies Bergère", "Music at the Tuileries", "Breakfast on the Grass", "Papa Lathuille's", "Argenteuil"), Claude Monet ("Field of Poppies at Argenteuil ”, “Walk to the Cliff in Pourville”, “Women in the Garden”, “Lady with an Umbrella”, “Boulevard des Capucines”, a series of works “Water Lilies”, “Impression. Rising Sun”), Alfred Sisley (“Country Avenue” , "Frost at Louveciennes", "Bridge at Argenteuil", "Early Snow at Louveciennes", "Lawns in Spring"), Pierre Auguste Renoir ("Breakfast of the Rowers", "Ball at the Moulin de la Galette", "Dance in the Village", "Umbrellas", "Dance at Bougival", "Girls at the Piano"), Camille Pizarro ("Montmartre Boulevard at Night", "Harvesting at Eragny", "Reapers Resting", "Garden in Pontoise", "Entrance to the village of Voisin") , Edgar Degas (" Dance class”, “Rehearsal”, “Concert at the Ambassador Cafe”, “Opera Orchestra”, “Dancers in Blue”, “Absinthe Lovers”), Georges Seurat (“Sunday”, “Can-Can”, “Models”) and others.

(Paul Cezanne "Pierrot and Harlequin"")

Four artists in the 90s of the 19th century create a new direction in art based on impressionism and call themselves post-impressionists (Paul Gauguin, Vincent van Gogh, Paul Cezanne, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec). Their work is characterized by the transmission of not fleeting sensations and impressions from the surrounding world, but the knowledge of the true essence of things, which is hidden under their outer shell. Their most famous works: Pauls Gauguin ("A mischievous joke", "La Orana Maria", "Jacob's fight with an angel", "Yellow Christ"), Pauls Cezanne ("Pierrot and Harlequin", "The Big Bathers", "Lady in Blue"), Vincent Van Gogh ( Starlight Night”, “Sunflowers”, “Irises”), Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (“Laundress”, “Toilet”, “Learning to dance at the Moulin Rouge”).

Impressionism in sculpture

(Auguste Rodin "The Thinker")

As a separate trend in architecture, impressionism did not develop; you can find its individual features and signs in some sculptural compositions and monuments. This style gives sculpture free plasticity of soft forms, they create an amazing play of light on the surface of the figures and give a certain feeling of incompleteness, sculptural characters are often depicted at the moment of movement. to works in this direction include sculptures by the famous French sculptor Auguste Rodin (“The Kiss”, “The Thinker”, “Poet and Muse”, “Romeo and Juliet”, “Eternal Spring”), Italian artist and sculptor Medardo Rosso (clay and plaster figures filled with wax to achieve a unique light effect: “The Gatekeeper and Procurer”, “Golden Age”, “Motherhood”), Russian brilliant nugget Pavel Trubetskoy (bronze bust of Leo Tolstoy, a monument to Alexander III in St. Petersburg ).

One of the largest trends in art in the last decades of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth is impressionism, which spread throughout the world from France. Its representatives were engaged in the development of such methods and techniques of painting that would make it possible to most vividly and naturally reflect real world in dynamics, to convey fleeting impressions of it.

Many artists created their canvases in the style of impressionism, but the founders of the movement were Claude Monet, Edouard Manet, Auguste Renoir, Alfred Sisley, Edgar Degas, Frederic Bazille, Camille Pissarro. It is impossible to name their best works, since they are all beautiful, but there are the most famous ones, which will be discussed further.

Claude Monet: “Impression. Rising Sun"

The canvas with which to start a conversation about the best paintings of the Impressionists. Claude Monet painted it in 1872 from life in the old port of French Le Havre. Two years later, the painting was shown to the public for the first time in the former workshop of the French artist and cartoonist Nadar. This exhibition has become a life-changing event for the art world. Impressed (not in the best sense) by the work of Monet, whose original name sounds like “Impression, soleil levant”, journalist Louis Leroy first coined the term “impressionism”, denoting a new direction in painting.

The painting was stolen in 1985 along with the works of O. Renoir and B. Morisot. Discovered five years later. Currently Impression. The Rising Sun" belongs to the Marmottan Monet Museum in Paris.

Edouard Monet: Olympia

The painting "Olympia", created by the French impressionist Edouard Manet in 1863, is one of the masterpieces of modern painting. It was first presented at the Paris Salon in 1865. Impressionist artists and their paintings were often in the center high-profile scandals. However, Olympia caused the largest of them in the history of art.

On the canvas we see a naked woman, with her face and body facing the audience. The second character is a dark-skinned maid holding a luxurious bouquet wrapped in paper. At the foot of the bed there is a black kitten in a characteristic pose with an arched back. Not much is known about the history of the painting, only two sketches have come down to us. The model was, most likely, Manet's favorite model, Quiz Menard. There is an opinion that the artist used the image of Marguerite Bellanger - Napoleon's mistress.

During that period of creativity, when Olympia was created, Manet was fascinated Japanese art, and therefore deliberately refused to study the nuances of dark and light. Because of this, his contemporaries did not see the volume of the depicted figure, they considered it flat and rough. The artist was accused of immorality, vulgarity. Never before have Impressionist paintings caused such a stir and mockery from the crowd. The administration was forced to put guards around her. Degas compared Manet's fame through the Olympia and the courage with which he accepted criticism with Garibaldi's life story.

For almost a quarter of a century after the exhibition, the canvas was kept inaccessible to prying eyes by the master artist. Then it was exhibited again in Paris in 1889. It was nearly bought, but the artist's friends raised the required amount and bought the Olympia from Manet's widow, and then donated it to the state. The painting is now owned by the Musée d'Orsay in Paris.

Auguste Renoir: The Great Bathers

The painting was painted by a French artist in 1884-1887. Taking into account all the Impressionist paintings now known between 1863 and the beginning of the twentieth century, the "Great Bathers" is called the largest canvas with nude female figures. Renoir worked on it for more than three years, and during this period many sketches and sketches were created. There was no other painting in his work that he would devote so much time to.

In the foreground, the viewer sees three naked women, two of which are on the shore, and the third is in the water. The figures are painted very realistically and clearly, which is a characteristic feature of the artist's style. Renoir's models were Alina Charigot (his future wife) and Suzanne Valadon, who in the future became a well-known artist herself.

Edgar Degas: Blue Dancers

Not all of the well-known Impressionist paintings listed in the article are painted in oil on canvas. The photo above allows you to understand what the painting "Blue Dancers" is. It was done in pastel on a paper sheet measuring 65x65 cm and belongs to the late period of the artist's work (1897). He painted it with already weakened vision, so the decorative organization is of paramount importance: the image is perceived as large colored spots, especially when viewed close up. The theme of dancers was close to Degas. She repeatedly repeated in his work. Many critics believe that the harmony of color and composition " blue dancers" it could be considered best job artist on the subject. The painting is currently kept in the Museum of Art. A. S. Pushkin in Moscow.

Frederic Bazille: "Pink Dress"

One of the founders of French Impressionism, Frederic Bazille was born into a bourgeois family of a wealthy winemaker. Even in the years of study at the Lyceum, he began to get involved in painting. After moving to Paris, he made acquaintance with C. Monet and O. Renoir. Unfortunately, the fate of the artist was destined for a short life path. He died at the age of 28 at the front during Franco-Prussian War. However, his, albeit few, canvases are rightfully included in the list of “The Best Impressionist Paintings”. One of them is “Pink Dress”, written in 1864. By all indications, the canvas can be attributed to early impressionism: color contrasts, attention to color, sunlight and a stopped moment, the very thing that was called “impression”. One of the artist's cousins ​​Teresa de Horse acted as a model. The painting is currently owned by the Musée d'Orsay in Paris.

Camille Pissarro: Boulevard Montmartre. Afternoon, sunny"

Camille Pissarro became famous for his landscapes, a characteristic feature of which is the depiction of light and illuminated objects. His work has provided notable influence to the genre of impressionism. The artist independently developed many of the principles inherent in him, which formed the basis of creativity in the future.

Pissarro liked to write the same passage in different time days. He has a whole series of paintings with Parisian boulevards and streets. The most famous of them is Boulevard Montmartre (1897). It reflects all the charm that the artist sees in the seething and restless life of this corner of Paris. Looking at the boulevard from the same place, he shows it to the viewer on a sunny and cloudy day, in the morning, in the afternoon and late in the evening. In the photo below - the painting "Boulevard Montmartre at night."

This style was subsequently adopted by many artists. We will only mention which Impressionist paintings were written under the influence of Pissarro. This trend is clearly seen in the work of Monet (a series of paintings "Hacks").

Alfred Sisley: Lawns in Spring

"Lawns in Spring" is one of the most late paintings landscape painter Alfred Sisley, painted in 1880-1881. On it, the viewer sees a forest path along the banks of the Seine with a village on the opposite bank. In the foreground is a girl - the artist's daughter Jeanne Sisley.

The landscapes of the artist convey the true atmosphere of the historical region of Ile-de-France and keep a special softness and transparency. natural phenomena characteristic of specific times of the year. The artist was never a supporter of unusual effects and adhered to a simple composition and a limited palette of colors. The painting is now in the National Gallery in London.

We have listed the most famous Impressionist paintings (with titles and descriptions). These are masterpieces of world art. The unique style of painting, which originated in France, was at first perceived with derision and irony, critics emphasized the blatant negligence of artists in painting canvases. Now hardly anyone dares to challenge their genius. Impressionist paintings are exhibited in the most prestigious museums in the world and are a desirable exhibit for any private collection.

The style has not sunk into oblivion and has many followers. Our compatriot Andrei Kokh, french painter Laurent Parcelier, Americans Diana Leonard and Karen Tarleton are famous modern impressionists. Their paintings are made in best traditions genre, filled bright colors, bold strokes and life. In the photo above - the work of Laurent Parcelier "In the rays of the sun."

impressionism

is the newspaper of the soul.

Henry Matisse.

Impressionism is a direction in painting that arose and developed in France in the second half of the 19th century - the first quarter of the 20th century. It was art school, which put in the forefront "to convey impressions, but in such a way that it is perceived as something material." The task of the impressionist artist was to depict his own feelings from objects.

It is well known that the very word "impressionism" in relation to artists was first used by the journalist Louis Leroy, who was prompted by this title of the painting by Claude Monet " Impression. Sunrise”, which depicts the port of Le Havre in a bluish predawn haze.

The painting is in the Musée Marmottan-Monet in Paris. There are more than three hundred paintings of the Impressionists and Neo-Impressionists here, which means that by visiting the museum, you will already come out with some understanding of the ideas of Impressionism. And you can continue at the Musée d'Orsay, whose collections many can envy.

Impressionist artists transferred to canvases only their perception of reality and its various manifestations, and not what they knew: for example, the earth in their paintings can be purple, lilac, blue, pink or orange, but never black or dark brown.

Impressionism, so criticized by contemporaries, was appreciated fifty years later, and today the Impressionists are regarded and appreciated as masterpieces of world painting. We present to your attention the most memorable representatives of impressionism.

Renoir, Pierre Auguste (1841 - 1919).

Art historians say that important achievement Renoir is to use the theory of the Impressionists and their technique not only when he painted landscapes and still lifes or people in the open air, but also when painting nude models and portraits.

Renoir often referred to the image of a naked female body. He conveyed the play of light and sun on the skin, which seemed alive in his paintings. He painted nude female body, with frozen drops of water, mother-of-pearl sparkling skin, pink, tanned, and at the end of life - orange, iridescent in the fire of sunlight.

Renoir rejected all theories, saying: " Theories don't help write good picture, most often they try to cover up the lack of expressive means».

Interestingly, the first works of Renoir are made in a realistic manner. For example, "Diana the Hunter" and "Mother Anthony's Tavern".

Renoir was friends with Monet, an impressionist painter, which will be discussed below. This friendship, in fact, led to the fact that Renoir will use the technique of the Impressionists.

Nevertheless, art historians and painting historians pay attention to the fact that if, following the example of the Impressionists, Renoir refuses dark tones, but from time to time he still makes small inclusions in his paintings. Among the works of this period, in the first place, one can name Pont Neuf, Grand Boulevards, Path among tall grass.

The artist, suffering from bouts of rheumatism, spent the last years of his life in the south of France in Cagnes-sur-Mer at the Colette estate. Works of this period, from 1903 to 1919. imbued with sensuality, warm tones predominate on Renoir's canvases - pink red, orange.

The influence of the masters of the past is very noticeable - Rubens Boucher and others. For example, “ Judgment of Paris», « Bather wiping her leg". the best and latest work considered the painting "Bathers", written in 1918. Today, his estate, in the shade of an olive and orange grove, is open to visitors. You can look into the living room and dining room, go upstairs to the artist's bedroom, which preserves the atmosphere of his last days: wheelchair, easel and brushes. A photograph of Renoir's son Pierre hangs on one of the walls in his wife's room, and an amazing view of Antibes and Upper Cannes opens from the window.

Thanks to French cinema, you can immerse yourself in last period the life of Auguste Renoir, get to know his son and see the struggle of art with harsh reality. In March, the film by French director Gilles Bourdo "Renoir: Last Love" will be released on a wide screen. The artist is just finishing The Bathers.

azure coast, great artist, his muse ... the French are masters of their craft, and the opportunity to actually see the great master at work with his own eyes, and then see the result of his work, is worth a lot. It was this picture that closed the last Cannes Film Festival.

Monet Claude (1840 - 1926).

Claude Monet called the father of impressionism. The future artist was born in Paris, but his childhood and youth were spent in the north of France, in the city of Le Havre. Eugene Boudin had a great influence on Monet, french artist considered the forerunner of Impressionism. It was he who taught him to work in the open air (in the lane, in the open air).

Cezanne said: Monet is only an eye, but what an eye!» It's hard to argue and not fall in love with the Parisian streets, coasts and landscapes of Normandy, on Monet's canvases.

His famous painting Luncheon on the Grass was written in 1863. in the village of Chailly-en-Bières, located on the outskirts of the forest of Fontainebleau; its central part, affected by dampness and carved by the author, is stored in the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, and a repetition of the painting in the museum fine arts them. A. S. Pushkin in Moscow.

Autumn 1908 and 1909. the artist spent in Venice, captivated by the charm of the city, its ever-changing reflection on the water surface of the canal. Here Monet painted the paintings "Venice: Doge's Palace" and "Venice: Grand Canal". The genius of Monet incredibly managed to portray the city, as if covered in a light predawn haze.

At the sunset of your creative way Monet created exquisite paintings inspired by water lilies in the pond of his house in Giverny.

When the artist moved in 1883 in search of a quiet and peaceful place in Giverny, he hardly suspected how much life would change the life of a sleepy village in Normandy. Soon after his arrival, the city, eighty kilometers from Paris, in search of the Master was flooded by young artists from different parts Europe.

Today, artists and art lovers in search of inspiration come to take a walk in the gardens of Giverny, to visit the restored house. Therefore, if you fell in love with the beautiful paintings of Monet in the d'Orsay, Marmottan and Orangerie museums, then Giverny will not be in the first place on your must se list.

Sisley Alfred (1839 - 1899).

Being an Impressionist Sisley especially much attention paid to the transfer of nuances and sensations. He was very fond of painting the water surface, the sky, fog, snow. “It is necessary that the picture evokes in the viewer the same feelings that overwhelmed the artist when he looked at this landscape,” said Sisley.

Pay attention to how light, almost weightless the houses seem, the water surface with light ripples, the pastel sky and the foliage of the trees. His paintings, painted with thin, airy strokes, set in a poetic, romantic mood.

A significant collection of paintings by the artist is in the Musée d'Orsay in Paris. Do not leave it unattended when you are in the capital of France. You will enjoy not only Sisley's work, but also the paintings of other Impressionist artists exhibited in this museum on the banks of the Seine.

Pissarro Camille (1830 - 1903).

Art historians write that if Claude Monet and Sisley loved to imagine water and changing reflections on its surface in their paintings, then Pissarro preferred land. His art is free from fleeting impressions - everything in it is more fundamental. Notice how often in his paintings scenes from rural life. The artist used color scheme that when studying his canvases, it seems as if they are filled with light from within. Pissarro loved to write orchards, fields, surprisingly conveying the changes of nature.

Pissarro was familiar with Monet, with whom they loved to write together in the vicinity of Paris. Here were written "Gare Saint-Lazare", "Pavilion of Flora and Pont-Royal", "Comedie-Française", "View of the Louvre, Seine and Pont Neuf".

Cezanne called him "modest and great", well deserved, what do you think?

Seurat Georges (1859 - 1891).

One of characteristic features Seurat had a desire to bring a fresh stream to Impressionism.

His work is both drawings and paintings- based on the theory of contrasts. Most famous picture, certainly familiar to you, is the masterpiece "Sunday walk on the island of Grande Jatte", stored in the Art Institute of Chicago. This picture has become an expression of new trends in art, an expression of the ideas of neo-impressionism. The feeling of complete peace was achieved by combining cold and warm tones, light and shadow.

"Cancan", a no less famous painting by the artist, on the contrary, conveys a feeling of joy, movement, with the help of warm shades and bright colors.

I would like to end with the words of Claude Monet " People discuss my art and pretend to understand as if it were necessary to understand, when it "s simply necessary to love ». ( People discuss my paintings, trying to understand. Why do you have to understand when you can just love?)

European art of the late 19th century was enriched by the emergence of modernist art. Later, its influence extended to music and literature. It was called "impressionism" because it was based on the subtlest impressions of the artist, images and moods.

Origins and history of occurrence

Several young artists formed a group in the second half of the 19th century. They had a common goal and coincided interests. The main thing for this company was to work in nature, without the walls of the workshop and various restraining factors. In their paintings, they sought to convey all the sensuality, the impression of the play of light and shadow. Landscapes and portraits reflected the unity of the soul with the Universe, with the surrounding world. Their paintings are true poetry of colors.

In 1874 there was an exhibition of this group of artists. Landscape by Claude Monet “Impression. Sunrise” caught the eye of the critic, who in his review for the first time called these creators impressionists (from the French impression - “impression”).

The prerequisites for the birth of the impressionism style, the paintings of whose representatives will soon gain incredible success, were the works of the Renaissance. The work of the Spaniards Velasquez, El Greco, the British Turner, Constable unconditionally influenced the French, who were the founders of impressionism.

Pissarro, Manet, Degas, Sisley, Cezanne, Monet, Renoir and others became prominent representatives of the style in France.

The philosophy of impressionism in painting

The artists who painted in this style did not set themselves the task of drawing public attention to troubles. In their works, one cannot find plots on the topic of the day, one cannot receive moralizing or notice human contradictions.

Paintings in the style of impressionism are aimed at conveying a momentary mood, developing color schemes. mysterious nature. In the works there is only a place for a positive beginning, gloom bypassed the Impressionists.

In fact, the Impressionists did not bother to think through the plot and details. The main factor was not what to draw, but how to portray and convey your mood.

Painting technique

There is a colossal difference between the academic style of drawing and the technique of the Impressionists. They simply abandoned many methods, some were changed beyond recognition. Here are the innovations they made:

1. Abandoned contour. It was replaced with strokes - small and contrasting.
2. We stopped using palettes for We chose colors that complement each other and do not require merging to obtain a certain effect. For example, yellow is purple.
3. Stop painting in black.
4. Completely abandoned work in the workshops. They wrote exclusively on nature, so that it would be easier to capture a moment, an image, a feeling.
5. Only paints with good opacity were used.
6. Don't wait for the next layer to dry. Fresh smears were applied immediately.
7. They created cycles of works to follow the changes in light and shadow. For example, "Haystacks" by Claude Monet.

Of course, not all artists performed exactly the features of the impressionism style. Paintings by Edouard Manet, for example, never participated in joint exhibitions, and he himself positioned himself as a separate standing artist. Edgar Degas worked only in workshops, but this did not harm the quality of his works.

Representatives of French Impressionism

The first exhibition of Impressionist works is dated 1874. After 12 years, their last exposition took place. The first work in this style can be called “Breakfast on the Grass” by E. Manet. This picture was presented in the Salon of the Rejected. It was met with hostility, because it was very different from the academic canons. That is why Manet becomes a figure around which a circle of followers of this stylistic direction gathers.

Unfortunately, contemporaries did not appreciate such a style as impressionism. Paintings and artists existed in disagreement with official art.

Gradually, Claude Monet comes to the fore in the team of painters, who later becomes their leader and the main ideologist of impressionism.

Claude Monet (1840-1926)

The work of this artist can be described as a hymn to impressionism. It was he who was the first to refuse to use black in his paintings, arguing that even shadows and night have other tones.

The world in Monet's paintings is vague outlines, voluminous strokes, looking at which you can feel the whole spectrum of the play of the colors of day and night, the seasons, the harmony of the sublunar world. Only a moment that was snatched from the flow of life, in the understanding of Monet, is impressionism. His paintings seem to have no materiality, they are all saturated with rays of light and air currents.

Claude Monet created amazing works: "Station Saint-Lazare", "Rouen Cathedral", the cycle "Charing Cross Bridge" and many others.

Auguste Renoir (1841-1919)

Renoir's creations give the impression of extraordinary lightness, airiness, ethereality. The plot was born as if by accident, but it is known that the artist carefully thought through all the stages of his work and worked from morning to night.

A distinctive feature of the work of O. Renoir is the use of glazing, which is possible only when writing Impressionism in the artist's works is manifested in every stroke. He perceives a person as a particle of nature itself, which is why there are so many paintings with nudes.

Renoir's favorite pastime was the image of a woman in all her attractive and attractive beauty. Portraits occupy a special place in the creative life of the artist. “Umbrellas”, “Girl with a Fan”, “Breakfast of the Rowers” ​​are just a small part of the amazing collection of paintings by Auguste Renoir.

Georges Seurat (1859-1891)

Seurat associated the process of creating paintings with the scientific substantiation of color theory. The light-air environment was drawn on the basis of the dependence of the main and additional tones.

Despite the fact that J. Seurat is a representative of the final stage of Impressionism, and his technique is in many respects different from the founders, he in the same way creates an illusory representation of the objective form with the help of strokes, which can be viewed and seen only at a distance.

Masterpieces of creativity can be called the painting "Sunday", "Cancan", "Models".

Representatives of Russian impressionism

Russian impressionism arose almost spontaneously, mixing many phenomena and methods. However, the basis, like the French, was a full-scale vision of the process.

In Russian impressionism, although the features of French were preserved, the features national nature and states of mind have made significant changes. For example, the vision of snow or northern landscapes was expressed using an unusual technique.

In Russia, few artists worked in the style of impressionism, their paintings attract the eye to this day.

The impressionistic period can be distinguished in the work of Valentin Serov. His "Peach Girl" clearest example and the standard of this style in Russia.

The paintings conquer with their freshness and consonance of pure colors. main theme creativity of this artist is the image of man in nature. "Northern Idyll", "In the Boat", "Fyodor Chaliapin" are bright milestones in the activity of K. Korovin.

Impressionism in modern times

At present, this direction in art has received new life. AT given style several artists paint their paintings. Modern impressionism exists in Russia (André Kohn), in France (Laurent Parcelier), in America (Diana Leonard).

Andre Cohn is the most prominent representative new impressionism. His oil paintings are striking in their simplicity. The artist sees beauty in ordinary things. The Creator interprets many objects through the prism of movement.

The watercolor works of Laurent Parcelier are known all over the world. His series of works Strange world were released as postcards. Gorgeous, vibrant and sensual, they are breathtaking.

As in the 19th century, this moment artists remains plein air painting. Thanks to her, impressionism will live forever. artists continue to inspire, impress and inspire.

Impressionism is often regarded precisely as a direction in painting that originated in the 19th century in France. Impressionism brought in a double revolution, which is simultaneously reflected in the vision of the world and painting technique. He shows painting moving, ephemeral, elusive, focusing on the passing moment in the present. 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 a unique technique in painting.

Andre Kohn- a native of Volgograd, Russian Federation. From the age of 15 he took up a serious study of painting under the guidance of Natalia Gavrichenko and Anatoly Vrubel. Since the artist deserved high praise in oil painting from Western colleagues, he migrated to America. He currently 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.

André 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. On the American scene, the impressionist Andre Kohn is considered one of the most interesting figures.

Modern French impressionism in painting by Laurent Parcelier

Laurent Parcelier- maestro watercolor, contemporary french impressionist. Characteristic in the work of Porzelier is a clean and bright manner of conveying those places where the artist himself visited. the artist shines with light, brightness, impression. Author's strokes and tones inherent only to him alone.

Contemporary American Impressionism in Painting by Diane Leonard

Diana Leonard is one of those artists who have gained instant popularity. She began to create from the age of 20 and almost immediately her talent was appreciated by experts in the field modern painting. Diane Leonard- an impressionist artist, honored in his homeland, and also a part-time writer. The canvases of the artist will speak for themselves. Happy viewing!

Contemporary Impressionist painter Karen Tarlton

Karen Tarlton in one of her personal interviews, she spoke of herself as a universal artist working in the genre of impressionism. According to her, the strength of the artist is plein air painting. A tool in creating author's colorful canvases is, and with it a rich color palette. In her paintings, Karen Tarlton does her best to inspire and please the viewer with a combination of light, color and texture.

Karen is a current specialist in Impressionist painting with a palette knife. Often paints landscapes and portraits. Currently lives and works in Manhattan Beach, California.