In April 1874, a group of young artists, whose paintings had been rejected by the Paris Salon, gathered to hold an exhibition independent of the gallery at the Académie des Beaux-Arts. This difficult and pioneering work marked the beginning of Impressionism.It is the artistic movement that revolutionized painting in the second half of the nineteenth century, which in turn was the starting point for the avant-garde.
this spring, 150 years after this remarkable historical event took placeParis looks to recapture the essence of the movement with an exhibition organized in Orsay Museum Which brings together many of the works that formed the first Impressionist exhibition.
Legendary gallery
The origin of this movement dates back to the winter of 1873, when Claude Monet, Edouard ManetPierre Auguste Renoir, Berthe MorisotEdgar Degas and 26 other artists The Paris Salon refused to exhibit their works the following year. The institution had welcomed them in previous editions, but at the time, its conservative streak did not approve of the new techniques and styles that these young men were beginning to paint on canvas.
Refusing to accept the censorship of the Salon, the artists created a cooperative called A joint stock company for painters, sculptors and engraversWith the aim of collecting their works and presenting them months later in an alternative exhibition to the academy’s exhibition. This exhibition was held in the studio of fashion photographer Nader, which is located a few steps from the opera. Mark before and after in art history It led to impressionism.
Rediscovering Impressionism from a new perspective
Under the title Paris 1874. The Impressionist MomentThe exhibition celebrating the 150th anniversary of Impressionism returns to that moment and Examines the circumstances that led these 31 artists to rebel Against the academy and taking their own way.
With the aim of recreating the context in which this movement emerged, the Musée d'Orsay has been restored Many works that were part of the First Impressionist Exhibition She exhibited it with other works accepted at the Paris Salon of 1874. They explained of the art exhibition that “this unprecedented confrontation allows us to recreate the visual impact of the works exhibited by the Impressionists at that time, but also to differentiate them through unexpected similarities and comparisons between the Impressionist exhibition The first and the salon.
During the visit, you can see more than 130 paintings and sculptures brought from museums and private collections in Europe and the United States on the occasion of the anniversary. Among these Capuchin Boulevard to Monet, Dancing at the Galette Mill to Renoir, Ballet rehearsal on stage Degas and Modern Olympia by Cézanne, as well as some of the most famous paintings by Impressionist painters Berthe Morisot and Yves Gonzalez.
As you progress along the way, the diversity of work allows you to do so Discover the contradictions and endless artistic wealth Which the city of Seine experienced during those years, in addition to the shock it represented to French society, the radical modernity with which the Impressionists launched into the Parisian scene. It opened on March 26th Paris 1874. The Impressionist Moment It can be enjoyed until next July 14.
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