Welcome to Paris

You have decided to travel to Paris, France; the city of love. As a well-respected art professor and gallery owner from London, you take the summer off and go abroad. You arrive in the city during the summer of 1881. Upon your arrival you immediatly begin to explore the city. You seeing spectacular sights of budding romance to the poverty stricken sidestreets of the Montmarte district. Among these illustrations of modern life are a group of painters that specifically have caught your tasteful eye. These painters portray a new style of art that is unfamiliar to you and thoroughly refreshing. The art is stricken with bright and soft colors beautifully brushed within rolling landscapes and somewhat meloncholy depictions of suburban life. You are surprised to find out that the group of talented artists creating these masterpieces haven't been well recivied in the conservative arts community. Their art has been deemed unfit for the gallery showing at the prestigious Parisian Salons. You know that this "impressionist" art must be displayed. Quickly gathering the supplies necessary, you decide to open your own gallery to allow these genius's to showcase their work.

The Gallery

Please pick 3 paintings of the impressionist movement to display in the front of your gallery. These should be you favorite paintings of the genre. Mesmorized by the Parisian society, each painting you pick especially accentuates to the gallery visitors the unique and changing mood of French culture. These paintings should portray quite prominantly the social or industrial aspects of French life that continued to evolve throughtout the later decades of the 1800's. To be sure to impress the French salon owners who will visit your gallery, prepare an oral presentation that will explain your idealogy behind chosing your three paintings that hang in the front and why those represent French culture.

Finding a Painting

First-In order to research properly and convince the French salon owners that you know what you're talking about and that these artists shouldn't be outcasts of the artsitic community, but thoroughly embraced for their geneis. Click on link #1. Once on the site, click the other link to the left that says "Experience Impressionism" and take the small guided tour of the genre.


Second- After aquiring a basic background of information about the beginnings of Impressionism, you'll want to know a little bit about the artists themselves who are creating these masterpieces in order to understand the subject matter they portray that you are so keen on displaying. Click on link #2 and read the other otherview on Impressionism and it's founders and the social conflict of the time.


Third- To further your information about social aspects of French life click on link #3. On this page, carefully read the large paragraph that talks about different ways that artists like Monet and Renoir mirrored culture and industrial change in their paintings.


Fourth- Back on the WebMuseum site (link #2) is a paragraph full of names of the founders of the Impressionist movement. Click on each one of the names (Monet, Renoir, Pissarro, Sisley, Degas, Cezanne, and Manet). Make sure to read the biography about each one and examin closely the list of paintings on the side, being sure to notice the subject matter that each artist uses.


Fifth- Since now you have seen some of the most famous paintings by these artists, you now can begin to grasp Impressionism as a whole and the certain style it carries, the modernity of the genre is fascinating. Find out why these works of art were so innovative. Please direct yourself to link #4 and read the given article. Also please click on link's #5 & #6 to read a more extensive history of the french culture that will help with an understanding of certain subject matter these artists are painting. A note: on link #6, scroll down to the "modern" section to the neoclassic era.


Sixth-Now that you know much about what Impressionist style is and have knowledge of the movement's history, it's time now to devulge into the real process of examining and choosing your three paintings that will be showcased. Make your way into the print archive of the library and find the following prints to examine as possible choices: AP/709.44/Ren, AP/709.44/Ren-li, AP/709.44/Deg-t. Closely look at each painting and draw your own conclusion to whether or not these paintings dipict soical and cultural aspects of the French. Think about the lighting, the position of the subjects and, obviously, the subjects themselves. Think also about your favorites, and if these same artistic concepts apply/do not apply.


Seventh- By this time in the researching process, you're sure to have discovered more than a couple of favorite paintings. Think carefully about the three that you will display in the front of your gallery. Make sure are enthusiastic enough about the three, because you will further analyze and discuss them and spending time creating your oral presentation. Once you have chosen your paintings, apply the knowledge you've learned about each Impressionist artist and their subject matter and the ways that they relate to French culture and society. While analyzing and creating your conclusions about your paintings, make sure to check back on each site you have visited previously to refresh yourself on the information. Have fun!

The Opening

Does life imitate art or does art imitate life? Questions pondering what exactly causes creativity have been asked since the beginning of art's birth. One specific answer has not yet been deemed entirly true, so therefore the actual conclusion of the question remains unsolved. Each half of the question can, indeed, apply to different aspects of "the arts". The French Impressionist movement and style of art is simply a snapshot in time that finely captures a certain moment in the history, culture, and mood of the period. Throughout this process you've discovered for yourself what paintings clearing depict the changing cultural times. You will be sure to impress the salon owners and many gallery patrons that will frequent your gallery with your extensive knowledge of the French Impressionist movement.