For my project, initially I wanted to go for a topic such as language of flowers, but I found that the history was not as linear or universal as I would have liked, so I switched my focus over to painting styles and decided on impressionism.
For my approach, I started out wanting to do an impressionist painting of my own. I honestly don’t know how to use oil paint, so I went digitally. I painted a scene of a lake close to where I live and tried to capture as much of the emotion of the environment and take in the light. After my painting was complete, it was in desperate need of a frame. I couldn’t just leave it plain and unfinished. I have a certain affinity for intricate vintage framing but better I thought it would fit the classy museum theme I was trying to achieve.
To further enhance my piece, I wanted to add in some plinths and a light source, both to draw the eye to the painting and to add interest. They also sort of mimic the gallery space back in my hometown. To bring out the light, I had to darken the background, especially in the corners, which also created a sense of drama which I adore.
I spent some time on the text, finding the best layout and font. After much trial and error, I landed on Bodoni. My biggest downfall was the amount of writing that I had for what I realized to be a very small space. I cut down best I could to both include a bit of an explanation to impressionism itself and its origins.
As for composition, I tried to balance the whole piece with detailing in two corners and to use alignment so that everything looks pleasing in its place.
I really enjoyed working on this assignment. I have never been able to work with type before so it is a learning experience but very intriguing to find the different ways it can add to designs.
Overall my work took me an estimated 10 hours: a couple for research and writing, 1 for each painting and frame, and a majority spent adding everything else together and editing over and over to create the final copy.
About Impressionism
The impressionistic style started back in the 1860s as a heavily denounced yet revolutionary artistic movement. Impressionism went beyond classical renditions, the only art showcased at the time, to introduce a whole new approach to painting. Impressionist painting would often be done outdoors (pleine-air) in an attempt to capture candid fleeting moments in time with a heavy focus on light. Artists would often use quick small brushstrokes and, instead of mixing color on a canvas or palette, would paint colors side by side for a different visual effect. Impressionism also gave room for artists to play with color palettes and associations.
During the beginning of the impressionist emergence, the most popular way to become a famous artist was by having their work exposed in the juried salon hosted annually by the Fine Arts academy in France. Artists such as Monet and his friends, who all had a similar style and approach to painting, but painted outside of the academy’s strict tates of classical themes, received rejection to a better portion of their work.
In response to seeing all of these rejected pieces, Emperor Napoleon III put together a new salon (Salon of the refused). This new exhibition was only held once; however, it inspired the Painters Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, and Camille Pissarro along with others to start their ownTheir first show was in 1874, featuring over 30 artists’ works and hosted in the studio of the photographer Felix Nadar. The show received intense criticism from journalists; nevertheless, they hosted seven more shows in the next 12 years and gained mass popularity.
Sources:
https://www.history.com/topics/art-history/impressionism
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