| Basic Concepts: Impressionism
Impressionism is an aesthetic movement that began in Europe, the influence of which would have world-wide significance. Impressionism demonstrates through both painting and literature the principle that human experience of the physical world is, at best, an interpretation and reconstruction of that world through the senses. . As an established movement, impressionism dominated French art between 1880 and 1890. Representative French impressionists include a most impressive lineup including Édouard Manet, Claude Monet, Pierre Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro, Alfred Sisley, Berthe Morisot, Armand Guillaumin, and Frédéric Bazille, Edgar Degas and Paul Cézanne. European literary impressionists include England's Joseph Conrad and France's Stéphane Mallarmé. . Online Connections For a brief introduction to impressionism, see "WebMuseum/Paris--Impressionism." For a discussion of the influences of the impressionist movement, see "Key Influences of the Impressionist Movement and A Brief Chronology of Impressionism." For a discussion of theory of impressionism and its influence on music, see "Impressionism." . Our Course Connections The poetry of both Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson is influenced by impressionism. Twentieth-century American authors whose works exhibit impressionist style include Stephen Crane, Ford Maddox Ford, Henry James, and William Faulkner. .  |