The Impressionists were a group of artists who lived in or near Paris in the 1800's. They were friends who painted side by side and posed for one another. They lingered over long meals together, debating about art and life, and encouraged each other in big and small ways. The ones with money helped the ones who were poor. Together, they created an art revolution.

Industrial Revolution
Imagine living in a world without any machines - no cars, airplanes, bicycles, telephones, radios, recorded music - not even any electric lights. That's the world into which the Impressionists were born! Yet within the span of their lifetimes, all of these things were invented. This was the period of the Industrial Revolution, when for the first time in history, machines did the work that had been done by hand and new inventions radically changed the way people lived their daily lives.

People on the move
Before the Industrial Revolution, families lived in the same place for generations and children grew up to do what their parents did. In the 1800's, that began to change. With steamships and railroads, travel became easier. Huge numbers of people left farms and country life to seek new work in factory towns. Millions more left Europe for North America and other parts of the world.

Childhood in the 1800's
Wealthy and middle class children led sheltered lives. They were usually educated at home, by governesses or tutors. Some went to private or church-run schools. Poor children led very different lives. Their families needed the few pennies they could earn and often put them to work by the age of five. Many children worked up to 16 hours a day in factories or as household servants and received no formal education at all.

War and Revolution
Wars bring tragedy, loss and upheaval to all who live through them. Soldiers die and watch their comrades die. Families at home face economic hardship and the loss of loved ones. The Impressionists lived through a succession of wars and revolutions. In 1848, when most of them were children, revolutions broke out across Europe - in France, Austria, Hungary, Switzerland, Ireland, Denmark and several German and Italian states. Mary Cassatt lived through the American Civil War before moving to Paris to paint. A few years later, war broke out between France and Prussia, drastically affecting the lives of all the Impressionists. Some fought in the war; others left the country to escape the fighting. A few months after the Franco-Prussian War ended in French defeat, civil war broke out in Paris as thousands of citizens took up arms against the French government. In their old age, Monet, Renoir, Degas and Cassatt lived through yet another war, World War I.

Scientific Exploration
The 1800's brought major advances in science. For example, Louis Pasteur discovered that bacteria spread many diseases. Because of his work, doctors began to sterilize equipment before surgery and childbirth, saving millions of lives. Charles Darwin published his theory of evolution. Gregor Mendel experimented with garden peas and discovered how traits are passed from parent to child, founding the science of genetics. Sigmund Freud explored the unconscious mind, pioneering the new field of psychology. At the turn of the century, Albert Einstein triggered a scientific revolution with his theories about space, time and how the universe works.

How Impressionist paintings were different
Unlike previous artists, the Impressionists did not paint every little detail. Instead, they wanted to capture spontaneous moments and fleeting reflections of light on people and things. In earlier art styles, a painter's brush strokes were hardly visible and the surface of a finished painting was smooth. The Impressionists let their brush strokes show and sometimes put thick dabs of paint on the canvas. They also used brighter, more vibrant colors than earlier artists did. Impressionist art was so new and different that the public was shocked at first.

Rebellion against the official Salon
In the mid-1800's, when the Impressionists were just starting out, there was only one way for artists to achieve success. Their paintings had to appear in the national art exhibition, called the Salon, which was held in Paris each year. To have a painting accepted by the Salon, an artist first had to submit it to a panel of judges. Year after year, the Salon judges refused almost every Impressionist painting. The few that were accepted were usually displayed up high or in a place where they were easily overlooked.

Finally, in 1874, a group of Impressionist artists decided to put on their own exhibition. Unfortunately, only 3,500 people came to the month-long show, compared to 450,000 people who attended the official Salon. And most of those who came just jeered and made fun of the art. One reviewer said, "These artists appear to have declared war on beauty." But the Impressionists did not give up. They went on to hold seven more exhibitions over the next twelve years. Each time their paintings gained a little more acceptance.

Café chats
Monet, Renoir, Degas and Manet would paint all day, then get together at their favorite Paris café with other artists and writers. Monet recalled, "Nothing could be more interesting than these sessions with their perpetual clash of opinions. They kept our wits sharpened and provided us with stores of enthusiasm."

Painting outdoors
Before the Impressionists, artists made rough sketches outdoors then returned to their studios to paint the final picture. The Impressionists wanted to paint entire pictures outdoors. The recent invention of metal paint tubes and portable easels made it possible for them to paint wherever they liked, but painting outdoors presented new challenges. In a studio, the light is fairly even, but outdoors it changes from one minute to the next. Each artist developed ways to capture the moment with a sense of spontaneity.

Japanese Influence
After Japan began trading with the West in 1868, Japanese art and objects became hugely popular in France and had a major impact on the Impressionist artists. They particularly liked the simple line drawing, the flat areas of bold color and the way the main subject was often off center. Many Japanese prints had no single point of focus so the eye of the viewer was encouraged to wander all over the picture. The Impressionists used some of these same devices.

Influence of Photography
First invented in 1839, photography immediately became popular. By the 1850's artists, scientists and amateurs were taking pictures. In the late 1880's the first small box camera was invented, allowing almost anyone to take snapshots. Travelers returned with photographs from faraway places and people took pictures at home. In snapshots, people and things were often cut off at the edge of the picture and anything that moved came out a bit blurry. The Impressionists created these same visual effects in their paintings.