What is Impressionism? How Rejection Changed Western Art Forever

Exploring the 19th-century art movement that revolutionised painting.

Overview

Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities, ordinary subject matter, unusual visual angles, and inclusion of movement as a crucial element of human perception and experience. Impressionism originated with a group of Paris-based artists such as Manet and Cezanne whose independent exhibitions brought them to prominence during the 1870s and 1880s, leading to an era dubbed 'Post-Impressionism' which influenced the likes of Van Gogh.