Impressionist 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.
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Oil, Cardboard
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Oil, Panel
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Oil
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Cotton Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Paintings
Oil
1980s Impressionist Paintings
Paper, Watercolor
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Oil, Canvas
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Oil Pastel, Ink, Acrylic, Watercolor, Handmade Paper
Late 19th Century Impressionist Paintings
Oil
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Linen, Oil
1940s Impressionist Paintings
Canvas, Oil
1980s Impressionist Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
Lush trees frame a serene pond, where the water reflects the vivid sky and its fluffy white clouds. Lily pads float gently on the surface, adding a touch of g...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Paintings
Oil
Early 20th Century Impressionist Paintings
Oil
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Paintings
Watercolor
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Wood, Oil
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Oil
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Canvas, Mixed Media
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Oil, Canvas
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Paintings
Oil
1990s Impressionist Paintings
Paper, Oil
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Oil, Board
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Paintings
Oil, Canvas
20th Century Impressionist Paintings
Gouache
20th Century Impressionist Paintings
Oil
1870s Impressionist Paintings
Oil
1970s Impressionist Paintings
Masonite, Oil
Artist Comments
The sun emerges from behind a veil of clouds as pastel hues fill the sky, reflecting softly on the calm sea below. As demonstrated by this scene, artist Joanie ...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Paintings
Oil
1960s Impressionist Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Canvas, Oil, Board
Late 20th Century Impressionist Paintings
Watercolor
1910s Impressionist Paintings
Mixed Media
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Paintings
Oil, Laid Paper
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Paintings
Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Paintings
Canvas, Oil
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Gesso, Oil, Acrylic, Canvas
1930s Impressionist Paintings
Oil
Mid-20th Century Impressionist Paintings
Oil
1960s Impressionist Paintings
Oil
1960s Impressionist Paintings
Oil
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Canvas, Oil
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Paintings
Oil
Early 20th Century Impressionist Paintings
Oil, Board, Gouache
Late 20th Century Impressionist Paintings
Oil
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Oil, Acrylic
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Paintings
Oil
1990s Impressionist Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
Inspired by the vibrant wildflowers of spring, artist Lisa Elley captures the dramatic beauty of poppies in full bloom. Painted entirely with a palette knife, t...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Paintings
Oil
1950s Impressionist Paintings
Cardboard, Paste, Tissue Paper
Early 20th Century Impressionist Paintings
Oil
20th Century Impressionist Paintings
Oil
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Panel, Oil
1880s Impressionist Paintings
Canvas, Oil
Artist Comments
Lush green lily pads and pink water lilies float calmly on a pond. Gentle ripples reflect the early morning sunlight, with the mist adding to the glow. Painte...
21st Century and Contemporary Impressionist Paintings
Oil
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Canvas, Acrylic
2010s Impressionist Paintings
Oil