Lesson 2: The Impressionist Movement
In the late 1860s, several artists were experimenting with new ways of depicting the world around them. Unfortunately, the academic salons of the time were not interested in the work of these artists, so in 1874, they banded together and put on a group exhibition. The artists participating in this exhibition became known as the Impressionists. In this lesson, you'll look at some of the technological breakthroughs that helped the artists explore new ways of painting and then you'll look at the work of the most famous impressionists.
Invention of the Paint Tube
The paint tube was invented in 1841 and artists were liberated from the studio. Before the invention of the paint tube, artists needed to grind each pigment and store them in leather receptacles or even pig bladders.
Now artists could work outside in direct sunlight or misty fog, at twilight or at dawn. So important was the invention of the paint tube, that it is credited with the rise of the Impressionists. In fact, Renoir once said "Without tubes of paint, there would have been no Impressionism."
Thanks to the paint tube and the mobility it provided, artists such as Monet and Renoir could try to capture the light of the moment and create a fleeting impression of reality.
Paint tubes also changed how artists put paint on canvases. Painting become much more spontaneous and direct. No longer were artists obliged to build up successive layers of thinned pigments and varnish as they had done since the Renaissance.
The way I--and many other painters--work on our canvases is a direct result of the advances made in the 19th Century. Here's a shot of me starting a painting outside--working with paint tubes (and some jars!) directly on the canvas, applying broad, spontaneous strokes.
Visit a site where you can learn more about the creation of paint tubes and how it influenced the development of painting in the late 19th and 20th centuries: http://www.uh.edu/engines/epi831.htm
