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The term Impressionism should be regarded as an umbrella name, under which a number of painters working in Paris in the late 1800s have been gathered. But not all are Impressionists. In fact, I contend that the only true Impressionist is Monet. The rest are something else – Impressionists by association.
JUSTIN NEWELL is an art historian and artist who has lectured extensively on Western painting, sculpture and architecture, the Bible in Western art and Greek myths in art.
Course outline
Lecture 1: MANET
It really does begin with Édouard Manet, the classicist. We examine his major works – Olympia, Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe, the Execution of Emperor Maximilian of Mexico, the Balcony – and many others. And we note the painters who influenced him.
Lecture 2: MONET
We look at the origins of the word Impressionism and its interpretation. We follow the evolution of Claude Monet’s art from the patch of colour to ‘tinted steam’. The various paintings and themes that we examine include Giverney and Rouen Cathedral.
Lecture 3: DEGAS
Like Manet, Edgard Degas was independently wealthy and this gave them both the freedom to create without worrying about selling. The results are challenging: melding together photography, painting, sculpture and classicism. Themes that interested Degas, and which we explore, include the Nude, Ballerine, the singer at the café.
Lecture 4: RENOIR
I call Pierre-Auguste Renoir the Reluctant Impressionist. Renoir was a close friend of Manet, Monet and Degas, but his roots, as an artist, are in the French Rococo period and although he did produce wonderful ‘impressionist’ paintings such as Dance at Le Moulin de la Galette, Renoir is essentially a portrait painter of the Impressionism period.
Lecture 5: RODIN
Auguste Rodin has been called the first Impressionist sculptor and the last Classical sculptor. We examine in depth his masterworks: The Man with the Broken Nose, The Thinker, Balzac, The Gates of Hell, The Burgers of Calais, and more.