Denvir, Bernard. The Chronicle of Impressionism. Boston: Bulfinch Press, 1987.
This is a fantastic book that reveals the history of the Impressionists chronologically. I loved reading this book because it was very informative in its account of the Impressionist's lives and their individual histories.
The book is arranged by years divided into months. The beginning of each year is summarized by a short paragraph that briefly describes that year's major Impressionist events. At the end of the year, a section is dedicated to bulleted statements that describe non-artistic events that were happening in the world during the year.
It was interesting to see the progression of Impressionist art from 1868 through to 1929. The Impressionists began as realist painters that followed the trends and techniques set by Edouard Manet in the early 1860's. This was a flat style of painting with very little depth of field. Objects and figures tended to have little form due to the frontal lighting that Manet preferred when painting his subjects. Many Impressionists, early in their artistic careers, used many dark, earthy tones and colors in their paintings, similar to Manet. They also frequently studied and copied master paintings in the Louvre. By the end of that decade, the Impressionists' palettes had opened to a full spectrum of colors. Many artists began to paint outdoors, directly from nature, following the ideas of the Barbizon school, led by an older artist named Camille Corot (better know to the Impressionists as "Papa Corot"). Also, the invention of the collapsible metal tube made it easier for artists to transport colors to and from their painting sites.
The year 1874 was the year of the first Impressionist show held at Nadar's studio. Nadar was a photographer, and was also a close friend and supporter of the Impressionists. This first show was not about creating a new style of art, but was actually about getting away from the limitations of the Salon. The Salon made it impossible for young, new artists to find a name for themselves, unless they were accepted by the Salon's jury. The Salon's jury was run by many bureaucrats that had a preconceived idea of art. Artworks were categorized and the most polished and technically proficient artists won the prize in that category.
I think of the Impressionist's exhibitions as month-long co-op galleries where the artists who contributed financially had their own say in the exhibition of their works. Similar to a co-op, the artists were solely responsible for the works to be selected, hung, and priced.
The book ends with the years 1980 to the present. These later chapters are a brief account of the Impressionist's impact on art today. Events such as the sales or auctions of Impressionist works are listed.
I enjoyed reading this book because it briefly described the lives of the Impressionists without too many details at this early stage in my study. The chronological format of the book made the information more interesting and understandable. This was a great book for me to read in the early part of my study on the Impressionist because of its broad overview of the subject.
Bernard Denvir is an art historian and writer. He is former head of
the Department of Art History at Ravensbourne College of Art and Design
and a former member of the Council for National Academic Awards. He
was also president of the British section of the International Association
of Art Critics. He is now currently consultant editor of The Artist.