Impressionism

Also called Impressionist painting

Impressionism takes its name from Monet’s Impression, Sunrise, mocked by critic Louis Leroy after the 1874 exhibition as merely an impression. Painters explored changing light, atmosphere and modern life through short, visible brushstrokes and adjacent colors. Even shadows carry shifting warm and cool hues, making the moment of seeing central.

Kind

Art movement

Period

1860–1886

Lineage

Nineteenth-century Modernity

Medium family

Printmaking, traditional arts and regional crafts

Medium

Oil painting

Technique

Plein air · Visible brushwork

Colour

Broken color

Key traits

1. 01Keep short, broken brush marks visible rather than blending every color into a uniform gradient.
2. 02Describe light through neighboring hues and warm–cool shifts, retaining color in shadows.
3. 03Allow edges to shift between clarity and looseness with light and atmosphere.
4. 04Landscapes or modern everyday scenes may use cropped framing to suggest a moment of observation.