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.
Modern Figurative Impressionist Oil Painting of Flamenco Dancer (The Temptress)
Located in ludlow, GB
Modern Figurative Impressionist Oil Painting of Flamenco Dancer (The Temptress). A Large Oil Study of a Flamenco Dancer striking three different poses. This Oil Painting produced a ...
Oil
California Poppy Coast, Painting, Oil on Canvas
By Lisa Elley
Located in Yardley, PA
'California Poppy Coast' is an original oil painting by award-winning artist Lisa Elley. This painting captures a California coastal scene of the Pacific ocean greeting our state flo...
Oil
Flowering tree, Painting, Oil on Canvas
Located in Yardley, PA
Bring the beauty of spring into your home with this original oil painting of a flowering tree. The delicate pink flowers pop against the blue sky background, creating a serene and tr...
Oil
White Jockey, Oil Painting
By Judy Mackey
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
Bold strokes capture a partially nude woman against a deep, muted background. Artist Judy Mackey uses minimal detail, intentionally leaving the face blank to ...
Oil
Red Sky at Night..., Original Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
While driving west on Bahia Vista Road in Florida, artist Benjamin Thomas, his wife, and their dog, Gaia, noticed the sky turning into a breathtaking display...
Acrylic
Contemporary Impressionist Oil Beach Scene of Children playing at the Seaside
Located in ludlow, GB
Modern Impressionist Oil Painting of a Beach Scene of Children playing at the Seaside on Sandy Beach. Children playing with their fishing nets and buckets and spades exploring the rockpools and building sandcastles, what a really wonderful way to spend the day! A textured Oil on canvas by this listed and well known British Impressionist Painter. He is particularly famous for his unique textured canvases. This he achieves by painting first on a brushed and primed canvas and then layering on Oil Paint and Glazes. The overall effect is stunning luminosity of colour and an almost pointillist effect that is perfectly unique to this artist. "The Green Net" oil on canvas, signed and framed by Rene Jerome...
Oil
Street in Mormant, France, Original Painting
By Janet Dyer
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
Bright sunlight bathes a quiet street in Mormant, France. White houses with red roofs stand out against a vivid green lawn and a clear blue sky. Trees cast gentle shadows on the ground. Painted with brush and palette knife, the vibrant colors evoke a sense of warmth and tranquility.
About the Artist
Artist Janet Dyer...
Acrylic
It's Tea Time, Original Painting
By Nava Lundy
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
A woman pours tea from a shiny metal teapot into a delicate cup. The rich, warm liquid cascades smoothly. The composition reflects a routine that demands slow...
Acrylic
$426Sale Price|20% Off
Little river. 1983, cardboard, oil, 24x33 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Little river 1983, cardboard, oil, 24x33 cm
Oil, Cardboard
Stream in the Woods, Original Painting
By Janet Dyer
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
Tall, slender trees line a narrow stream in the foreground, their dark trunks partially obscuring a bright, open field in the background. The scene exudes a cal...
Acrylic
La Barque sur la Greve (Boat on a Beach)
Located in New York, NY
Color lithograph, 1960. Signed by the artist in pencil lower right margin. Numbered 163/300 in pencil lower left margin. Published by Maeght, Paris. Catalogue raisonné reference...
Lithograph, Color
Field with Dappled Sunlight, Giverny
By John Leslie Breck
Located in Milford, NH
A fine impressionist painting of a French pastoral landscape with trees and cows in the distance by American artist John Leslie Breck (1860-1899). Breck was born in the South Pacific...
Oil, Canvas
Sunset, Oil Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
Artist Shela Goodman presents a majestic scene with a golden glow reflecting on the lake's still water. The sun gently sets, crad...
Oil
Spring on the Hillside, Original Painting
By Janet Dyer
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
White blossoming trees grace an orchard in Provence, France. Painted with a brush and palette knife, the composition conveys their fleeting beauty. Their flow...
Acrylic
Two Roses, Original Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
This still-life painting depicts two red roses in a vase. The rich hues of the flowers stand out against the transparent glass and subdued background. The simple impressionistic rendering of the elements imparts a sense of stillness to the composition.
About the Artist
Artist Carey Parks paints impressionist scenes of everyday life that imbue a sense of nostalgia reminiscent of a family album. By observing how her subjects navigate their way and relate to each other, Carey seizes the moment they are randomly connected, even so briefly. "My goal is to capture the character and personalities of the individuals in a scene, as well as the surroundings as a whole," shares Carey. Positive in her artistry, she completed her undergraduate degrees in Fine Art and Zoology from UC Santa Barbara, then finished with a Master's in Art. When producing her paintings, she frequently mixes paint directly on the canvas to create intriguing color palettes. She carries out her creativity in her home studio, an organized space that helps her minimize any distractions. Carey also teaches as an adjunct professor of art during the school year. She enjoys running, hiking, and relaxing at the beach during her free time. Her esteemed work has been profiled in American Artist Magazine and numerous local publications.
Words that describe this painting: flower, rose, stem, vase, glass, floral...
Acrylic
Along The Seine
Located in Milford, NH
A fine impressionist landscape along the Seine River in France by American artist Chauncey Foster Ryder (1868-1949). Ryder grew up in New Haven, Connec...
Canvas, Oil
Home from the Office, Oil Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
A woman sits on a chair on her patio, enjoying a quiet moment of rest. On the table in front of her, a pitcher and glass of juice, oranges, and an open book awa...
Oil
"Old Cypresses by Chapelle Saint Marie" Plein-air painting from North France
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
In this plein air painting, Orsolic Dalessio creates a composition reminiscent of The Hudson River School paintings, but with an impressionistic hand. Along with the studied composit...
Canvas, Oil
Cornish Coast or Coast of Cornwall
Located in Milford, NH
A fine impressionist beach scene by American artist Charles Herbert Woodbury (1864-1940). Woodbury was born in Lynn, MA, and sold his first painting when he was fifteen years old and...
Canvas, Oil
Red Roses, Painting, Acrylic on Canvas
Located in Yardley, PA
The artwork is a vibrant depiction of blooming roses, painted with a combination of impressionistic brushwork and a lush palette of colors. The roses, rendered in shades of orange an...
Acrylic
Goldenrod, Painting, Acrylic on Canvas
Located in Yardley, PA
This vibrant piece captures a lush, rolling landscape with a striking foreground of colorful wildflowers. The rolling hills are painted in a soothing palette of greens, punctuated by...
Acrylic
$1,530Sale Price|20% Off
Boulders near the field. 1983, cardboard, oil, 68x94 cm
Located in Riga, LV
Boulders near the field. 1983, cardboard, oil, 68x94 cm
Oil, Cardboard
Lofoten Norway, Painting, Oil on Canvas
Located in Yardley, PA
This captivating artwork masterfully depicts a serene, snow-laden village nestled by a tranquil fjord, its beauty accentuated by imposing, jagged mountains under an expansive twiligh...
Oil
Watching the Snowstorm, Oil Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
A cat named Tiny watches an evening snowstorm from the comfort of her perch. Warm lamplight fills the interior, contrasting with the cold weather beyond the win...
Oil
Canada Geese, Oil Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
Artist Onelio Marrero lives near the Rockaway River in New Jersey, where he observes ducks and other waterfowl. In this impressionist painting, he captures danc...
Oil
Forgotten Coziness, Painting, Oil on Canvas
Located in Yardley, PA
A rustic wooden cabin stands amidst lush greenery, with a small fenced garden featuring blooming flowers and a thatched-roof structure in the background. The scene is filled with vib...
Oil
Behold What Tomorrow Brings, Oil Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
A woman stands before an oval mirror, preparing for bedtime. She gently brushes her hair, her posture relaxed and absorbed in the quiet moment. Warm, intimate l...
Oil
Victorian Landscape Classic Framed Oil Painting Children on the Beach Cornwall
By John Robertson Reid
Located in ludlow, GB
Victorian Landscape Figurative Oil Painting on Canvas of Children and Fisherman on the beach at Cornwall. A Large Framed Oil depicting Fisherman with his Catch and the Children s...
Oil
Winter Landscape with Trees
Located in Milford, NH
A fine colorful New England winter landscape with trees and a snow covered stone wall by American artist William Lester Stevens (1888-1969).Born in Rockport, Massachusetts, Stevens f...
Canvas, Oil
Modern Impressionist Oil of Palaces on Grand canal Venice Italy at Dawn
Located in ludlow, GB
Modern Impressionist Oil of Palaces on Grand canal Venice Italy at Dawn Large Impressionist Oil Painting of the Grand Canal, Venice at night with palaces and the Salute in the distance at Sunrise with light just starting to illuminate the Grand Canal. A Large and well framed Oil on Canvas on Stretchers and Famed by well known British Painter Rene Legrand...
Oil
Used Books, Oil Painting
By Duane Brown
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
A figure, viewed from above, confronts an overwhelming mass of books, echoing the anxieties about the saturation of information in contemporary society. The sce...
Oil
$2,400
"Long Beach, Sag Harbor 11.09.2020 2020" Hamptons beach seascape oil painting
By Nelson White
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
A plein air landscape of a "Foster's Memorial Beach" aka "Long Beach" in Long Island's famous Hamptons. This Sag Harbor Beach is beloved by locals and tourists alike, situated on Pe...
Oil
Contemporary Impressionist Marine Seascape Oil - Sailing Boats in Fowey Cornwall
Located in ludlow, GB
Contemporary Impressionist Marine Seascape Oil Painting of Sailing Boats in Fowey Cornwall. Large Signed Oil Painting of Sailing Boats in the Fowey Estuary and a view looking out t...
Oil
Abstract ll
Located in East Hampton, NY
Abstract work COMES FRAMED simple wood, app 1.5" deep. Cubism Style Post Modern About the Artist: Kenneth B Walsh (1922-1980) In the 1950s, Kenneth Bonar Walsh came to Montauk fr...
Cotton Canvas, Acrylic
Thick Outside
Located in Milford, NH
A fine Cape Cod scene with fisherman heading out on the dock in heavy fog by American artist Tod Lindenmuth (1885-1976). Lindenmuth was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and later worked in Provincetown and Rockport, Massachusetts, with a home in St. Augustine. A founder of the Provincetown Art Association and one of the original Provincetown Printers, Lindenmuth was a semi-abstract painter and graphic artist who did much to promote modernist styles and was well known for his modernist, semi-abstract and marine subject paintings. Lindenmuth studied with Robert Henri and was a member of the Salmagundi Club and the Rockport Art Association. He was also active in Provincetown until 1941, and then retired to Florida in the 1960s, having spent his winters there since the 1930s. Oil on canvas, signed lower right, title inscribed on verso Provincetown Art Association Regular Jury 1938 label “Thick Outside...
Canvas, Oil
$16,550
"Santa Maria Novella" 2007 realist landscape, oil painting, Tuscany, dirt road
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
An oil painting by American plein-air painter Marc Dalessio. A depiction of the rolling hills of Tuscany. Cultivated nature lives on the left with the vineyard organized with fencep...
Oil, Panel, Wood Panel
Once Upon a Time, Original Painting
By Nava Lundy
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
This painting captures one of those fleeting moments that somehow stay with us long after it has passed. A child is fully absorbed in imagination, creating an e...
Acrylic
Dreamland With Bunny_, Oil Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
A little girl sleeps with her arms wrapped around a plush bunny. She wears a white nightgown, which contrasts with the reddish tones in the background and foreg...
Oil
The Boats of San Sebastian, Oil Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
The boats sit ready for their next journey in the marina of San Sebastián, Spain. Calm waters and a sense of anticipation shape the coastal scene, evoking the ...
Oil
Spring - Pocasset MA
Located in Milford, NH
A fine New England Cape Cod landscape by American artist Aldro Thompson Hibbard (1886-1972). Hibbard was born in Falmouth, MA, studied at the Massachusetts College of Art and at the Boston Museum School with artists such as Edmond Tarbell, Frank W. Benson, Joseph R. DeCamp, and later became one of the founders of the Rockport Art Colony, living on Cape Ann in Massachusetts and summering in Jamaica...
Canvas, Oil
Prelude, Oil Painting
By Aruna Rao
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
The quiet anticipation of an evening settles over the coast. Soft pastel light gathers along the horizon as clouds drift across the sky and seabirds glide towar...
Oil
$2,400
"Sea and Sky 09.26.22" contemporary impressionist seascape in custom frame NHW
By Nelson White
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
A serene plein air painting from Nelson White, featuring his recognizable impasto whitecaps. A deep blue sea meets a lilac-brown horizon, and ascends back into the blue sky, adorned ...
Oil, Panel
Beach Wildflowers
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
A deeply impressionistic plein air painting of the beach and its flora. Clouds along the horizon, waves crashing on the beach. Framed dimensions: 13.5 x 17.5 inches Artist Bio: Mar...
Oil, Panel, Wood Panel
Home and Sunshine
Located in Milford, NH
A pleasant New England townscape scene by Dutch American artist Anthony Thieme (1888-1954). Thieme was born in Rotterdam, Holland and, after traveling in Europe, England, & South Ame...
Oil, Panel
Late Evening Redstone Colorado, Oil Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
This landscape painting beautifully captures Redstone, Colorado, renowned for its stunning scenery and as a popular filming location. In the late summer evening...
Oil
Kingfisher, Painting, Oil on Canvas
By Gary Westall
Located in Yardley, PA
The kingfisher, a jewel of nature. It is a joy to be able to see this bird live. I was able to observe these beautiful birds at a stream in the Wiehen Hills. Oil on canvas - 30 × 6...
Oil
Best Day at Dunn's Pond, Original Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
Dunn Pond, in Gardner, Massachusetts, is a spectacular visual and sensory delight. Originally a glacial formation, it has now been developed into a local park. ...
Acrylic
Florence Mid-Afternoon
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
Oil painting of a landscape in Florence, Italy, painted en plein air. ARTIST BIO Marc Dalessio was born in 1972 in Los Angeles, California. Even in his earliest years, it was eviden...
Canvas, Linen, Oil
The Canal At Lambertville, Oil Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
This painting by Onelio depicts a view of the Lambertville Canal, seen from the north on a late spring morning. With a keen eye for detail, Onelio beautifully c...
Oil
In My Solitude, Painting, Acrylic on Canvas
Located in Yardley, PA
Serene landscape of trees and flowing water :: Painting :: Impressionist :: This piece comes with an official certificate of authenticity signed by the artist :: Ready to Hang: Yes :...
Acrylic
View Toward Mountains, Provence, Original Painting
By Janet Dyer
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
Sunlit fields stretch across the countryside beneath a bright blue sky. Tall dark trees and scattered houses break up the rolling green landscape. Loose strokes...
Acrylic
Mt. Diablo from the Old Orchard, Original Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
Mt. Diablo is a well-known landmark in the California Bay Area. Artist Catherine McCargar has a view of it from her home in Walnut Creek. In this painting, she ...
Acrylic
$259Sale Price|20% Off
Poppy 2021., cardboard, oil, 30x21 cm
By Uldis Krauze
Located in Riga, LV
Poppy 2021., cardboard, oil, 30x21 cm
Oil, Cardboard
$5,000
"Tansy and Yarrow III" Impressionist landscape of wildflowers—yellow green white
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
"Tansy and Yarrow III" is an Impressionist painting of a meadow of yellow and white wildflowers. Artist Statement: Even as a child of 2, I had a strong affinity for using a pencil ...
Canvas, Oil
Memories of Tuscany, Oil Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
This impressionist painting depicts a scenic view of a Tuscan villa, framed by a small vineyard and tall Italian cypress trees. Artist Faye Vander Veer works wi...
Oil
"Swamp IV" Impressionist, waterscape, cool tones
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
"Swamp IV" is an Impressionist waterscape painting of a pond's surface. Painted en plein air. Unframed. Signed at bottom. Artist's statemen...
Canvas, Oil
"Pony and Groom" 2014 oil painting on wood, impressionist sketch, equestrian
By Ben Fenske
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
"Pony and Groom" is an unframed, oil on wood panel, contemporary impressionist painting. Painted during the 2014 Wellington Winter Equestrian Festival. Center stage, stands a fit, br...
Oil, Wood Panel
Field of Poppies
By Nelson White
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
Painted en plein air. Frame Dimensions: 17 x 21 inches Artist Bio: Nelson H. White was born in New London, Connecticut in 1932. White has been surrounded by art and artists from ...
Oil
Spring Tones, Oil Painting
Located in San Francisco, CA
Artist Comments
Tall, slender trees rise along both sides of a gently flowing stream, with foliage bursting in vibrant shades of green, capturing the essence of spring. Artis...
Oil
$3,800
"Pond Shorel" Impressionist plein air waterscape of the shoreline of a pond
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
"Pond Shorel" is an impressionist painting grass poking up from the edge of a pond. Painted en pelin air in the German countryside. Meinel is skilled at using texture and color to ac...
Canvas, Oil