The Impressionist Brush

60 Pages·1973·40.614 MB·English

by  John Rewald

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Ify ou had lived in Parisa hundredy ears ago, you picturess, o usedt o radicaal nde ven shockingn oveltyi n
mightn oth avev isitedt hef irstI mpressionisetx hibition. art,t hati t is hardf oru s to understandth e discomfort
Duringth e monthi tw as on view,i ts attendancew as only theirc ontemporariesf elt when confrontedw ithp aintings
a fractiono f that of the officialS alon, and the Salon was such as these. So the firstg alleries will be devoted to
the thingt o see. Amongt hose who did go, few seem to majorc urrentsin Frenchp aintingfr omt he 1840st o the
have responded with interesto r understanding:t he 1870s - fromt he anecdotal, ponderous, meticulously
general reactionw as amusement and indignation,w ith executed Salon pieces to workst hat reveal a growing
the paintingsb randeda s ugly, absurd, shapeless, fearful, interesti n color and spontaneity.I ncludedi n this section,
stupid. for instance, are two paintings by Manett hat form a
Beginning in December, you will have an opportunity dramatice xample of the old-guardt raditionalismo f the
to see an exhibitionc elebratingt he "moderna rt"t hat Salon judges: one painting,o bviously indebted to the
so unsettled Parisiansa centurya go. The nucleus of finesse of Velazquez,w as accepted for the Salon; the
Impressionism:A CentenaryE xhibitioni s made up of other- bolder, brighter,m ore summary- was rejected.
forty-twom asterpieces fromt he famous collection of the Also representedw ill be the nineteenthc entury'sn ew
Galeried u Jeu de Paume in Paris,f romt he Metropolitan artisticm ediump, hotographyw, ithp hotographos f the
(which possesses one of the most importantg roups of 1850s and 60s that reveal subjects and approaches
Impressionistp ictures in the world),a nd fromp ublic and similarto those of contemporarayr tistsO. therg alleries
privatec ollections in Europea nd America.I ncludedi s willc ontain laterp aintingsb y the Impressionistsa nd
not only Monet's pale but dramatics eascape, probably post-Impressionists;p reparatorys ketches and X-rays
the "Impression"t hat gave the group its name (lent by thats how theirw orkingm ethods; Salon picturest hat
the Mus6e Marmottanin Paris), buta lso such paintings indicate how Impressionisti nnovationsa ffected even
as Degas's magnificentT he CottonM arket,N ew Orleans staunchlyc onservative artists;a nd, finally,a n impressive
(fromt he Musee des Beaux Artsi n Pau), C6zanne's selection of pictures by AmericanI mpressionists,w hose
powerfulH ouse of the Hanged Man( fromt he Galeried u caliber and achievements are often underrated.I mpres-
Jeu de Paume), and Renoir's light-filledv iew of La sionism: A Centenary Exhibition was made possible
Grenouillere( fromt he Nationalmuseumi n Stockholm), by importantg rants fromb oth the NationalE ndowment
which will hang beside the Metropolitan'sv ersion by fort he Humanitiesa nd the New YorkS tate Councilo n the
Monet,p ainted at the same time. Arts,f or whose enthusiastic and generous supportw e
This superb exhibitioni s trulya n internationaul nder- are deeply grateful.
taking:it is anotherm ilestonei nt hej ointp rojectso f the Ina brilliante ssay in this Bulletin,t he distinguished
NationalM useums of France and the Metropolitan. arth istorianJ ohn Rewaldd iscusses the development
Organizedi n majorp artb y the French,w itht he Metro- and evolutiono f the Impressionists'b rushworkh, ow they
politan's cooperation and the active participationo f its influencedo ne another,a nd how they experimented-
staff, the show has been three years in preparation,a nd often successfully, sometimes not. Hist ext and the
is currentlyo n view in Paris, where -unlike its predeces- details he has chosen- half from pictures in the
sor a centurya go - it is attractingre cordc rowds. exhibition- define one of the most importantc ontribu-
Fori ts presentationi n New York,t his exhibitionw illb e tions of that group of paintersw ho not only changed the
expanded to include eight supplementaryg alleries, course of artb ut even changed our way of seeing.
containingw orks that help to put the Impressionists'
innovationisn c ontexta nd indicatet he scope of their Thomas Hoving
accomplishmentsT. odayw e are so familiarw itht heir Director
The MetropolitanM useum of Art Bulletin No. 3, 1973/1974
VolumeX XXIIN, umber3
Published quarterly.C opyright? 1974 by The MetropolitanM useum of Art,F ifthA venue and 82 Street, New York,N .Y. 10028. Second class
postage paid at New York,N .Y. Subscriptions $10.00 a year. Single copies $2.50. Sent free to Museum members. Four weeks' notice re-
quired for change of address. Back issues available on microfilmf rom UniversityM icrofilms,3 13 N. First Street, Ann Arbor, Michigan.V ol-
umes I-XXXVII(1I 905-1942) available as a clothbound reprints et or as individualy early volumes from Arno Press, 330 Madison Avenue,
New York,N .Y. 10017, or from the Museum, Box 255, Gracie Station, New York,N .Y. 10028. Editoro f the Bulletin:K atharineH . B. Stoddert;
Associate Editor:J oan K. Holt.A rtD irector:S tuartS ilver. Design: DavidB arnett.
1
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finishw hich, according to Cezanne, "faitI 'admira-
The
tion des imbeciles" (earns the admirationo f
imbeciles).
Impressionist
Almost anyone can be taughtt o paint. But know-
ing how to apply pigmentt o canvas does not
Brush
automaticallyc arryw ith it an abilityt o produce art,
any moret han a knackf or winninga t Scrabble
John Rewald guarantees the capacity to writep oetry.T hough
the painter'st echnology is fairlye asily acquired,
the same brusht hat can create a masterpiece can
produce a daub. Greata chievements occur only
when an artisth as something originalt o say and
uses his technical knowledge to fashion a personal
expression. His brushs troke is not an end in itself
but parta nd parcel of the creative process.
Iti s undeniablet hat Meissonierw as devilishly
clever at depicting horses (small), as was Rosa
Bonheur( large), that Bouguereauw as unequaled
at assembling rosy children( cute) and chaste or
wanton maidens (titillating)a, nd that Gerome
excelled in Egyptians cenes (historical)w itha pro-
fusion of archaeological details and sundrys tuffed
animals.1T hese skillfulc ompositions, painted by
wielders of uninspiredb rushes, were expensive
objects of fashion, far removedf romt hatt ruet ra-
dition,t he one celebrated by Baudelairew hen
i: z A Ihen an artistu ndertakesh is work," he chanted the beacons of mankind:R ubens,
HeinrichW olfflino bserved, "certain Leonardo,R embrandtM, ichelangelo,P uget, Wat-
optical conditions present themselves teau, Goya, and Delacroix.
to him by which he is bound. Not The optical conditions by which the Impres-
everythingi s possible at all times. Vision has its sionists were boundw ere not those practiced by
own historya nd the revelationo f those optical the darlings of the official Salon-the Meissoniers,
categories should be considered as the primordial Cabanels, Geromes, Bouguereaus- butt hose
task of arth istory." which had been established by a few selected
Throughoutt he nineteenthc enturyt here were predecessors, in whose footsteps they decided to
two "traditions"o: ne, the generallya ccepted one, follow. Its eems permissiblet hen to elaborate on
a high-priceda nd widely acclaimed commodity; Wolfflin'ss tatement by statingt hat duringt he mid-
and another,a more adventurouso ne, generally dle of the last centuryc ertaino ptical conditions
contested at birtha nd forced underground.A mong presented themselves to the artistb etween which
the many things the adventurous- i.e., the true- he had to choose.
traditions tands for is a brushs troket hat speaks a
language of its own, that expresses a concept, that y thatt ime,t he age-olds truggleb etween
frequentlyh as a spontaneous quality,a sweeping color and line had reached a dead end.
assurance thatt ranscribest he most volatile per- Undert he banner of Ingres's dictatorial
ceptions onto canvas. As used by such masters as leadership, line reigned supreme. Allo ffi-
Rubens and Rembrandtt, his brushs troke never cial art instructionw as dominated by men infused
"sticks" to the support but manages-even though witht he ideas of Ingres,w ho opposed color as
it applies opaque pigment to solid ground-to if itw ere a vice. At best, color was considered a
capturet he vibrationso f light,t he pulse of life. complementt o line, an inferiort hough unavoidable
Whatc haracterizedt he nineteenth-centurya c- adjunctt o it.
cepted tradition,o n the other hand, was torpid Perhaps no one has betterf ormulatedt hese
brushworkb ent on erasing itself, so to speak, in a concepts, steeped in what was considered the
strenuous effortt o hide the interventiono f the classical heritage,t han WilliamB lakew hen he
painter'st ool for the sake of a smoothness and wrote:" Theg reat and golden ruleo f art,a s well as
2
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of life,i s this:t hatt he mored istincts, harpa ndw iry Indicationosf unresta, nde ven of mutinous
the boundingli ne,t he morep erfectt hew orko f initiativesw, eren otl ackingI. n1 867,b othC ourbet
art,a ndt he less keena nds harp,t he greateri s the andM anett,i redo f fightinga hostilea nds elf-
evidenceo f weaki mitationp, lagiarisma,n d perpetuatinjgu ryh, add efiantlyo rganizedth eir
bungling." owno ne-mans hows,s omethings tillu nknown
Iti s againstt he backgroundof such narrowd oc- then.T hereh ada lso beenv ariousS alonsd es
trinest hatt he originatorosf a moderna pproach Refuses,w herer ejectedw orksh adb een exhibited,
emergeda nds lowlyf ormulatetdh e ideast hat witht he coverti ntento f demonstratinhgo wj usti-
inevitabllye dt o Impressionism. fiedt hej uryh adb een ine xcludingt hem.T hus,t he
Event houghh e was decrieda s a "colorist," exhibitiona ssembledi n 1874b yt he groupw ho
Delacroixh adn otb een ablet o reacha n expres- wouldb ecomek nowna s the Impressionistws as
sion wherec olorw ouldb e completelyin dependent no realn oveltyN. ors houldi th aveb een so surpris-
of line.Y et,w ithinth e confineso f prevailingp ic- ingt hata newg enerationo f paintersh ada rrived
torialc ustoms,h e achievedw ondersb y infusing on thes cene whop referredD elacroixto Bou-
historicalm, ythologicaol,r O rientaslu bjectsw itha guereau,C ourbetto Geromew, hol ovedn ature,
splendorb ehindw hichq uiveredth e sensibility admiredC orota, ndc onsideredc olora divineg ift.
ands ensuousnesso f a visionarye namoredo f all Butt he criticst riedt o disposeo f themw itht heir
the hueso f the rainbowH. owevert,h e adored cheapestw eapon:r idiculeW. hatt hej ury'si nequi-
"Orientalistso"f those daysw ereF romentiann d, ties hadb een unablet o achieve,a mockingp ress
especially,G erOmea,u thorso f countlessc omposi- hopedt o accomplisht:o disposeo nce andf or
tionsi nA fricanse ttings,a rtistsi nterestedin t he allo f thisi rreverenbtu nch.T hought heirw orkd id
narrativaen dp icturesquen, ott he pictoriapl oten- notc arrya nys erioust hreata nda tw orstm erely
tialso f theirs ubjects.I fD elacroixb, yc ontrast, showeda brazend isrespectf ors ociety'sc oncepts
discoveredt he luminoucs omplexiono f theA frican of artisticla wa ndo rdert, hese peopleh adt o be
continenti,t w as because he arrivedin t he East eliminatedso thatt he establishedt raditioncso uld
witha n eye noto nlya ttunedt o bute agerf ori ts continueu nchallenged.
multicolorerda dianceB. ute ven Delacroixh adt o Thef actt hatt he Impressionistws erea blet o
lookf orc oloru nderf oreigns kies or inh istory; breakt hiss trangleholdte stifiest o theirs trength
he avoidedc ontemporarsyu bjectsu nlessh e andt heirw illt o persevereT. hem iracleis noto nly
couldt urnt hemi ntoa llegories.I ndeedt, he aspects thatt hisg oal was finallya chieved,b utt hati t
of ordinaryli few eres tillc onsideredt oo banalt o was done byt he mostu nlikelyb ando f iconoclasts:
be worthyo f the artist'sb rush. a haughtyd andyl ikeM aneta; n easygoings treet
Courbeto, n the otherh and,i nvolvedw itht he urchinli keR enoira; soft-heartedr evolutionarliyk e
socials ignificanceo f hisw ork,c ouldn otj eopard- Pissarroa; self-doubtingd reamerli keC ezanne;
ize the ideologicalm essage of his paintingsb y an exquisitey oungw omano f highlyp roperb ack-
indulgingin v ibrantto nalitiesA. ndh e hadt o groundl ikeB ertheM orisota;n da n aristocraot f
sacrificec olorf ory et anotherr eason:t he garb impeccableb reedingb uto ccasionallya rrogant
wornb yh is preferredsu bjects- workerso r peas- andn astyd ispositionli keD egas.A mongt hemw as
antso f Ornans- was a farc ryf romt he lustrous onlyo ne rude,o utspokend, efianta, ndd omineer-
garmentso f odalisquest, he exoticr aimenot f black inge gotist,C laudeM onetY. et,d espited ifferent
slaves,o rt he bloodt hats pillsf roma warrior's ideasa ndd ifferenat pproachesd, ifferenat ttitudes
sword,s ightst hate xcitedt he imaginatioonf andd ifferencto ntributiontso, gethert heyr ana
DelacroixM. illeat ndC orotw, hot urnedt o nature self-promotinagn da pparentliyn exhaustible
as an escape fromt he literarcyo nnotationos f academicismto the ground.
subjectm attera, lso used colors paringlya ndd id
notm anage,e ither,t o shakeo ffc ompletelyth e ad fatel imitedth e lifes pans of the individ-
currenpt receptso f compositiono, f the relationship ual Impressionistass it had rationedth ose
betweenf igurea ndb ackgroundo,f scale, per- of Alexandetrh e Greato r RaphaelM, ozart
spective,a nds o on. Nord idt heyu se brushwork or ByronW, atteauo rG ericaultI,m pres-
thats howedr adicadl eparturefsr omt he norm. sionisma s a movemenmt ightn ot havec ome into
Andy et,f romD elacroixto Corott herea ppeared being.B ute ven ifs uch a circumstanceh adc ome
- sometimes surreptitiously-a ll kinds of pictorial to pass andt hese paintersh adn otl ivedt o organize
innovationtsh atu nnerveda publicu nwillintgo theirh istorice xhibitiono f 1874,t he unorthodox
changei tsv isualh abits. tendenciest hata ppearedv erye arlyi nt heirw orks
3
- notl eastt heirb rushs trokes,a pplieda s vehicles somewhato lderP issarro( Figure8 ). Wew ould
botho f perceptionsa nde motions-wouldh ave haveb eend eprivedo f Cezanne'ss ubsequent
inspiredo therst o explores imilara venueso f color work,f romt he patienta ccumulationof layerso f
and light.O neo f the surests igns of the "inevi- pigment( Figure1 6)t o the deliberatela ters tyle
tability"of Impressionismis thatt hism ovement thatb ecames o meaningfutlo the nextg enerations
was nott hef eato f a single person,n orw as it (Figure2 9). They oungD egas,o n the otherh and,
buttressedb yt he performancoef a centrafl igure, whiles tillf arf romt he amazingf reedomo f his last
as Romanticismb y Delacroixo r Realismb y oils andp astels( Figure3 0), wouldh aved eserved
Courbetb, utt hati te mbodiedt he aspirationos f a specialn oticef ort he masterfudl raughtsmanship
group.T hatg roup,g atheredm oreo r less by acci- andt hev eryp ersonalc olora ccentsw ithw hich
denta nd lackingr ealh omogeneityc, omprised he transformeIdn gres'sm eticuloutse chniquei nto
artistso f the same generationin spiredb yv aguely a modernv ernacula(rF igure1 ). Att he same time
paralletl endencies,t houghw hatm ost clearly his sense forc ompositions hows howa dventurous
boundt ogethera Degasa nda Pissarrow as their andu nconventionahle couldb e (Figure3 ). Andre
mutuacl ontemptf oro fficialdomr atherth ana Chenier( anotherg eniusw hose lifew as cut brutally
commona rtistico utlooko ra ttitude.2 short)h ad proclaimed": Surdespensersnouveaux
Exceptf orB azillew, how as killedd uringth ew ar faisonsd es versa ntiques!"(O nn ewt houghtsl et
of 1870,n oneo f the Impressionistdsi edy oung. us writea ntiquev erse).D egas,w itha n uncanny
Buti t is temptingn, everthelesst,o speculateo n giftf oro bservationm, anagedt o relyo n time-
whatt heyw ouldh avel eftb ehindh adt heyd is- honoredm odeso f executionw hilei nformintgh em
appearedb eforet he 1874e xhibitionS. omeo f their witht he mostm odernt houghts.
star-crossedc ontemporariess,u ch as vanG ogh, Onlyt hey oungR enoira ndS isleym ayn oth ave
Seurata, ndL autrecc, onceivedm asterpiecesa nd announceda ny particulagri fts,e xceptt hato f
imposedt heiri ndeliblem arko n the evolutiono f sensitivityT. heym ighth ave survivedm erelya s
artd uringth e veryf ewy earst hatt heyw ereg iven. pleasante nought alents,s omewhato n the levelo f
Mosto f the Impressionistws ouldh aveb equeathed thats hownb yt heiru nfortunatceo mrade,B azille.
to us paintingso f considerables tature- notj ust Duringh is earlyy ears,R enoirw as tornb etweent he
of "promise"-t hough, form osto f them,t he early heritageo f Delacroixa nd CourbetS; isley only
workso fferf ewc lues to theirm atures tyle.H adt hey slowlyd isengagedh imselff romt he Barbizon
dieda tt he age of aboutt hirty-fiveth, eirn ames, school. Renoirp, ossiblyb ecauseo f his belated
whiles ignificantw, ouldn otc arrya nythingli ket he start,e volveda trulya stonishingd exterityo f brush
weightt hey carryt oday.3I ns ome cases the brush thatp rovidedh is delicatev isionw itha beautifully
strokea lonec hangeds o mucht hat,t o the unini- orchestratedp roficiencyB. utS isleyd idn otk eep
tiated,a n earlya nda latec anvasb y Degas,o r in step witht he others.D espitet he marvelous
Renoiro, r Pissarrof,o re xample,m ays eem to have perceptivitayn dt he authenticly ricismo f which
been paintedb yd ifferenat rtists. he gave manyp roofsi nt he 1870s (Figures1 0 and
Be thisa s it may,t herec an be no doubtt hate ven 18)w henh is handlingo f the brushs howedt he
inM anet'se arlyw orks( Figures2 and4 ) we would same assurancea ndd eftnessa s thato f Moneth, is
haver ecognizedt he inheritoorf a superb,p ainterly laterw orks lackeneda ndl osti ts exquisitef resh-
traditiona, manw itha fluidityo f the brusha nda n ness, its delectables ense of color.N otb eing as
innates ense forc olore qualt o those of the Spanish robusta s Monet,n ot as constantlyd elightedw ith
and Dutchm astersh e so admiredO. nlyt oward whath e saw as RenoirS, isley mayh ave been
the end of his lifed idM aneta pplya brusht hatw as worno ut by the ravagings trugglef ors urvivaol f
trulyli beratedfr omm useums ouvenirs( Figures which- unliket he others- he never saw the end.
19 and2 0), andf ort hath e was indebtedt o the ButS isley'sf ate illustrateas nothers, ingularfa ct.
Impressionisttso, Moneta bovea ll.I fM onetw ould Therew as somethingl ikea n "Impressionist
not have been haileda s the forerunneorf Abstract moment,"w heny oung eyes and fresh minds
Expressionisma,n accoladeh e has been granted undertookto gethera n assaulto f falset raditions,
on the strengtho f his finalc anvases (Figure3 2), like revolutionariesw ho, shouldert o shoulder,
he wouldn everthelessh aveg aineda dmiratioans stormt he barricadesT. heyh elpede ach other,
a highlyi ndividuaul,n usuallyc hallenginga, nd learnedf rome ach other,s haredt heire xperiences
powerfuyl ounga rtist( Figure6 ), one- incidentally ina trulyu niquea nda dmirablfea shion.W ould
-whose daringa ndf orcefulnessw erem atched we be ablet o distinguishw hog ave andw ho
int he middle1 860s byC ezanne( Figure9 ) andt he receivedm orei fs ome of the paintersh adn ot
4 Continuedo n page 54
1 DEGAS-THEB ELLELLFIA MILY1,8 58-1862
Oil on canvas, 783/4x 991/2i nches
Mus6e du Louvre,G alerie du Jeu de Paume
Among the Impressionists - a designation of which
he did not approve - only Degas readily proclaimed his
admiration for Ingres. But where Ingres had been cold,
precise, and hostile to imagination, Degas showed
himself delicate and almost tender (qualities which,
however, he did his best to conceal). Above all, he was
an independent and inventive artist, who knew how to
liven up the austerity of a portraito f afamily in mourning,
redundant with black, through vivid accents that betray
the colorist behind the impeccable draughtsman. (The
black itself, incidentally, is modified by the introduc-
tion of colors, an ingenious device already used by
Velazquez.)
Very early in his career, Degas struck a perfect
equilibrium between the technical rigors he derived
from his self-chosen master, an eclectic eye that let
nothing essential escape, and a wholly intellectual
delight in turning the unconventional into something
apparently quite commonplace. With a brush steeped
in tradition, and with a disciplined line, Degas thus
created - seemingly without effort- a new idiom of
realism.
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2 MANET-M ADEMOISELLVEIC TORINIEN T HE
COSTUMEO F AN ESPADA,1 862
Oil on canvas, 65 x 501/4i nches
MetropolitanM useum,B equest of Mrs.H . O. Havemeyer,
The H. O. HavemeyerC ollection,2 9.100.53
"Influence," ArthurK oestler wrote, "doesn't mean
imitation; influence means feeding and digesting."
Manet never tried to disguise his indebtedness to such
masters as Velazquez and Hals, but what he learned
from them above all was how to gain the authority and
mastery of brush he needed to follow the intuitions of
his eye. Far from trying to copy, to shock, or even to
surprise, he merely wished to perfect the artistic quali-
ties with which he was so richly endowed. His vision,
though trained in the past, was no slave to traditions.
While many of his subjects were still tied to a conven-
tional picturesqueness, he was much too perceptive
not to dispense with ready-made formulas. The subject
for him was nothing but a vehicle for his painterly
instincts, and his work always shows a unique, quite
sensuous predilection for color and touch.
Manet's superb craftsmanship here appears, among
others, in the blue note nestled against black, a precious
sapphire encased in somber velvet. And his brush -
spontaneous, fluent, oblivious of any difficulties -
models forms, places highlights and shadows, estab-
lishes contrasts or smoothly fuses nuances without ever
imprisoning shapes in rigid outlines. He draws with
his brush, as the masters he admired had done.
3 DEGAS- A WOMANW ITHC HRYSANTHEMUMS,
1858-1865
Oil on canvas, 29 x 361/2i nches
MetropolitanM useum,B equest of Mrs.H . O. Havemeyer,
The H. O. HavemeyerC ollection,2 9.100.128
The great wonder of Degas's beginnings is his per-
fect command of his media, his ability to strike different
moods and to adopt different brush strokes in accord-
ance with them. Yet he does not idly experiment.
Rather, he seems to explore, with tremendous dedica-
tion, varied avenues so that with almost every new
picture emerges a new Degas.
Having discarded his early, historical subjects, he
turned to portraiture as a means of coming to terms with
the world in which he lived. And since he had already
studied a group in mourning (Figure 1), it appears
natural that he should have searched for an opportunity
to associate color- a rich, fairly luxuriant,y et per-
fectly controlled color-with a modern likeness.
A drawing of the sitter, dated 1858, was used in this
composition on which the artist seems to have worked
till 1865. But the main theme is a still life of flowers - a
subject that never seemed to interest Degas particularly
- here turnedi ntoa strange and innovativep ortrait,
in whicht he attractiono f the blossoms by far outshines
that of the sitter.A s to the off-center arrangement,i t
nonchalantlya ppropriatesO rientalc oncepts and
exhibitsa masteryo f balance that hovers on the edge
of the impossible.
While the figure is treated with a certain dryness
(compared with the lush brushwork of Manet), the flow-
ers are painted with such delicacy and trueness that
they approach the romantic bouquets of Delacroix.
Fantin-Latour was to devote almost a lifetime to such
realistic still lifes, whereas Degas seems merely to have
measured here his aptitude at combining a daring
composition with various textures, but especially with
color and line. Once he had shown that he could solve
these problems he could proceed in other, equally
unconventional directions.