"Unveiling the Beauty of Impressionism: A Journey through 150 Years in the 'Sunday Morning' Archives"

On April 15, 1874 – 150 years ago – a groundbreaking art exhibition took place on Rue du Capucines in Paris. This exhibition showcased works by 30 artists, including renowned names such as Paul Cézanne, Edgar Degas, Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir. Organized by the "Anonymous Society of Painters, Sculptors, and Engravers, etc.," this event marked a turning point in the art world. The exhibition was a direct response to the Paris Salon, an annual government-sponsored art show that often rejected the works of these emerging artists. Despite its noble intentions, the exhibition was not well-received initially. Only 3,500 patrons attended, and critics were harsh in their reviews. It was during this time that the term "Impressionist" was coined as a derogatory label, inspired by Monet's painting "Impression, Sunrise." However, history has since vindicated these artists. They went on to revolutionize the art world, creating a new language of art that continues to inspire and captivate audiences to this day. To delve deeper into the lives and works of these innovative painters, check out the video below:

Édouard Manet

Paul Cézanne

Edgar Degas

Claude Monet

Camille Pissarro

Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Dutch artist Vincent Van Gogh

Jacqueline Adams visits an Art Institute of Chicago retrospective of the vast 60-year career of Claude Monet (Aug. 27, 1995);

Camille Pissarro

A retrospective of works by Edgar Degas

As an American and a woman, Mary Cassatt was a rarity among the French impressionist masters. Jacqueline Adams took in an exhibition of her work at the Art Institute of Chicago (Nov. 22, 1998);

Paul Cézanne (whom Picasso called "the father of us all") was the subject of "Cézanne in Provence," a sun-bleached collection of 117 paintings and watercolors at the National Gallery of Art in Washington. Morley Safer paid a visit (April 23, 2006);

Pointillism was the technique of Georges Seurat

Gustave Caillebotte was a wealthy French lawyer who embraced the radical new Impressionist movement, as a collector and an artist himself. His paintings, hidden away for a century, were the subject of an exhibit attended by Jacqueline Adams (April 23, 1995);

In the sweltering summer of 1999, Charles Osgood took in a Brooklyn Museum of Art exhibition of cool art titled "Impressionists In Winter: Effets de Neige" (Aug. 1, 1999);

The late works of Pierre-Auguste Renoir

At the Art Institute of Chicago, an exhibition of late-period Degas

Childe Hassam

Also, director Julian Schnabel and actor Willem Dafoe talked with Serena Altschul about reimagining Vincent Van Gogh's life in the film "At Eternity's Gate" (Jan. 6, 2019).

Exhibitions

There are numerous exhibitions honoring the anniversary of Impressionism.

The Musée d'Orsay in Paris hosts "Paris 1874: Inventing impressionism" (though July 14). The show, featuring 130 works, will then travel to the National Gallery of Art in Washington (September 8, 2024 through January 19, 2025).

Other shows include:

• Experience "The Impressionist Revolution from Monet to Matisse" at the Dallas Museum of Art until November 3rd.
• Discover "Mary Cassatt at Work" at the Philadelphia Museum of Art from May 18 to September 8.
• Explore "Nature as Model" at the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Tourcoing, showcasing Impressionist landscapes by Monet, Sisley, Renoir, Pissarro, and Cézanne until June 24.
• Delve into "Berthe Morisot à Nice, escales impressionnistes" at the Musée des Beaux-Arts Jules Chéret in Nice, featuring works by Berthe Morisot and her contemporaries until September 29.
• Experience "Van Gogh and the Stars" showcasing "Starry Night over the Rhône" at the Vincent van Gogh Foundation in Arles until August 25.
• Visit "Impressionism and the Sea" at the Musée des impressionnismes in Giverny, exploring the theme of the sea in Impressionist art until June 30.