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.
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pastel
Artist Comments
Artist Siyuan Ma depicts a temple towering on the ancient city walls of China. These buildings stand as critical defensive structures and serve as important p...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Artist Comments
Artist Siyuan Ma depicts an impression of one of the ancient city walls in China. These walls serve as important defensive structures - products of Chinese ar...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Artist Comments
This is a painting done en plein air, and is my impression of shoreline grasses and distant hills, with the intrigue of a train coming through and just in vie...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pastel
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
2010s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Archival Paper, Graphite
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Artist Comments
Artist Judy Mudd presents a harmonious pastoral panorama—an entry to her series of impressionist landscapes. "I wanted to capture a farm scene at the beginn...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
19th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Pastel
Artist Comments
Artist Maurice Dionne paints a trio exploring the Mer Bleu Bog in an unexpected nature escape in Ottawa. "Located in the east end of the city, this unique bog...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Ink, Permanent Marker
20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Artist Comments
Artist Maurice Dionne illustrates a glimpse of O'Connor Street in Ottawa. He draws inspiration from the quality of light and the steeple, evident in the background. The light, the cars, and all the reflections create dynamic movement in the scene. "In sketching, I left a lot of impressionistic areas to catch your imagination," says Maurice.
About the Artist
Artist Maurice Dionne paints watercolor scenes of Ottawa, from quiet city walks to charming Victorian homes. "The transparency of the medium is truly remarkable; it allows so much light to shine through," says Maurice. He devotedly captures the mood and vibrancy most often inspired by the people around him. He finished a degree in science but ultimately decided to embrace his true freedom of expression. Now a full-time artist, he commits to a home studio as his haven of creativity, where he has access to artist-grade material that ensures that his pieces will be archival and endure the test of time. Maurice's work received merits from The Marketer Art Competition in 2020 and 2021 and was featured in the Electric Street Gallery, Ottawa Art Gallery, and Art Gallery of Ontario. He relishes cycling, hiking, kayaking, reading, and visiting specialty coffee shops with his spouse in his spare time.
Words that describe this painting: street, road, watercolor, cars, buildings, pedestrians, city, cityscape, architecture, travel, Canada, dome, buildings, impressionism, paper, architecture, impressionism, travel, watercolor painting, beige
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
1970s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
2010s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pastel
1960s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor, Gouache
1970s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Etching
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pastel
1950s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor, Acrylic
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pastel, Watercolor
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Permanent Marker
Artist Comments
Here are late summer sunflowers, girasoli, growing in a garden that also produces fresh seasonal vegetables for us locals. Sunflowers are always smiling, and ...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
1910s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
1970s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor, Gouache, Board, Laid Paper, Varnish
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Permanent Marker
1970s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor, Gouache
Late 19th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
1970s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Gouache, Graphite
1930s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Ink
20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Charcoal
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
1890s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
1980s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
2010s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Monotype
2010s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Early 2000s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Pencil
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor, Gouache
1940s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Ink
Early 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
Late 20th Century Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Watercolor
1950s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Permanent Marker, Ink
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor, Charcoal
1960s Impressionist Drawings and Watercolor Paintings
Paper, Watercolor