Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Emerging in 19th-century France, Impressionist art embraced loose brushwork and plein-air painting to respond to the movement of daily life. Although the pioneers of the Impressionist movement — Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, Paul Cézanne, Berthe Morisot, Camille Pissarro, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir — are now household names, their work was a radical break with an art scene led and shaped by academic traditions for around two centuries. These academies had oversight of a curriculum that emphasized formal drawing, painting and sculpting techniques and historical themes.
The French Impressionists were influenced by a group of artists known as the Barbizon School, who painted what they witnessed in nature. The rejection of pieces by these artists and the later Impressionists from the salons culminated in a watershed 1874 exhibition in Paris that was staged outside of the juried systems. After a work of Monet’s was derided by a critic as an unfinished “impression,” the term was taken as a celebration of their shared interest in capturing fleeting moments as subject matter, whether the shifting weather on rural landscapes or the frenzy of an urban crowd. Rather than the exacting realism of the academic tradition, Impressionist paintings, sculptures, prints and drawings represented how an artist saw a world in motion.
Many Impressionist painters were inspired by the perspectives in imported Japanese prints alongside these shifts in European painting — Édouard Manet drew on ukiyo-e woodblock prints and depicted Japanese design in his Portrait of Émile Zola, for example. American artists such as Mary Cassatt and William Merritt Chase, who studied abroad, were impacted by the work of the French artists, and by the late 19th century American Impressionism had its own distinct aesthetics with painters responding to the rapid modernization of cities through quickly created works that were vivid with color and light.
Find a collection of authentic Impressionist art on 1stDibs.
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Permanent Marker
1990s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Oil Pastel
1920s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
1970s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Charcoal, Ink
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pastel
Early 2000s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Charcoal
Artist Comments
In this black-and-white abstract piece, the deliberate arrangement of diverse forms and colors gives rise to distinctive patterns. The non-representational qu...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
Early 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor, Laid Paper
1950s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
2010s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pastel
Artist Comments
Artist Siyuan Ma illustrates the Shanhua Temple, located inside the ancient city of Datong in Shanxi Province–a key cultural relic under state-level protec...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Late 19th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Graphite
Artist Comments
Artist Siyuan Ma depicts Shanhua Temple, located inside the ancient city of Datong in Shanxi Province–a key cultural relic under state-level protection. "S...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Early 2000s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Charcoal
20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Pencil
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pastel
Artist Comments
Artist Maurice Dionne shows the activity around the transit station, waiting for an incoming train. "In this particular case, we are at the U of Ottawa statio...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
1970s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pencil, Graphite
1970s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
Artist Comments
Artist Catherine McCargar paints vibrant purple flowers cut fresh from her lawn. "This summer, after plentiful winter rains, the buddleia or butterfly bushes in my garden are full of lush blooms," shares Catherine. She gathers a bunch and paints them in an impressionist style, letting the watercolors flow together. Catherine makes a delicate and painterly portrait of the blossoming stems.
About the Artist
Impressionist Catherine McCargar expresses her deep admiration of nature through landscape paintings of Northern California...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
1980s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor, Laid Paper, Photographic Paper
2010s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pencil
2010s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pencil
Artist Comments
Artist Catherine McCargar captures the peaceful ambiance of a September morning in the countryside. She paints a view of Harmony, a tiny town along the central California coast just south of Cambria. The iconic farmhouse is enveloped by soft golden grasses and cool blue hills, imparting a tranquil feel to the scenic surroundings.
About the Artist
Impressionist Catherine McCargar expresses her deep admiration of nature through landscape paintings of Northern California...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
2010s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pencil
Artist Comments
Artist Siyuan Ma paints the entrance to Shanhua Temple, located inside the ancient city of Datong in Shanxi Province–a key cultural relic under state-level ...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
2010s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pencil
Mid-19th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Charcoal
Early 1900s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
2010s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pencil
Artist Comments
Artist Maurice Dionne shows a view of the Rocky Mountains under a thick layer of snow. The skier, enticed by the vast expanse of pristine white powder, gracef...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
1930s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor, Gouache, Laid Paper
20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Pen
Artist Comments
Artist Catherine McCargar presents a bright and lively impressionist rendering of flowers and leaves. They bloom profusely in a garden, celebrating abundance and color. The flowers, dahlias, roses, and pansies, growing so closely together, resemble a bouquet. "I am equally interested in gardening pursuits as I am in creating paintings," shares Catherine.
About the Artist
Impressionist Catherine McCargar expresses her deep admiration of nature through landscape paintings of Northern California. While she is well-versed in a range of media, her preferred medium for painting is watercolor. The fluidity of the paint allows her to capture the muted undertones and the fleeting light found in the natural world. While the backgrounds of her paintings are impressionistic, the foregrounds of her paintings are often highly detailed, showcasing her technical mastery over her medium.
Words that describe this painting: flora, nature, garden, roses, spring, summer, season, flora, flowers, dahlia, pansy, pansies, botanical, watercolor, paper, impressionism, impressionism, flora, watercolor painting, green
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
1940s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor, Laid Paper
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
Late 19th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
1930s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Conté, Postcard, Illustration Board
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor, Archival Paper
1980s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
1980s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
Artist Comments
"This painting is a closer-up version of an earlier work called French Laundry," shares artist Catherine McCargar. She uses the same technique of priming the watercolor paper with a layer of gesso as the first painting. The process gives more fluidity to the paint, enabling her to execute wet-on-wet and to move it around as she sees fit. Catherine achieves a truly impressionistic painting with contrasting soft and hard edges that keep the viewer engaged.
About the Artist
Impressionist Catherine McCargar expresses her deep admiration of nature through landscape paintings of Northern California...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
1980s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
1960s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
Early 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Chalk
1950s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
Artist Comments
Artist Siyuan Ma exhibits a panoramic view of mountains engulfed by a mysterious fog. He presents aesthetic imagery that can take the viewer into a dreamlike ...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
Artist Comments
Artist Siyuan Ma presents a snow-capped landscape enveloped by light fog. The abstract imagery takes the viewer into a dreamlike worl...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
