Abstract impressionism is an art movement that originated in New York City, in the 1940s. It involves the painting of a subject such as real-life scenes, objects, or people (portraits) in an Impressionist style, but with an emphasis on varying measures of abstraction.

History

Terminology

The coining of the term abstract impressionism has been attributed to painter and critic Elaine de Kooning in the 1950s.

The term, after being coined by Elaine de Kooning, Phillip Guston's rise within artistic and social spheres in the mid-1950s was a determining factor in the development and profiling of abstract impressionism. abstract impressionism sought to incorporate techniques from numerous movements before it. Additionally, abstract impressionists were unwilling to subscribe to the rationality and mathematic precision of Cubism.

In terms of distinguishing themselves from traditional Impressionist works, abstract impressionists deviate in a way that Elaine de Kooning describes as "keep[ing] the Impressionist manner of looking at a scene, but [leaving] out the scene... thereby giving an old style a new subject". Simply put, they add abstraction onto Impressionism and take away the reliance on specificity and exactness.

Criticism

Stylistic criticism

Abstract impressionism has been criticised for its legitimacy, and its inability to distinguish itself from other movements, by many art critics. After one of its early exhibitions at the Arts Gallery Council in St. James Square, Alan Bowness (a highly regarded art critic and historian) described abstract impressionism as "just another 'ism",- are simultaneously considered to be members of other more widely recognised movements, such as Abstract Expressionism, whether by their own definition or the labelling of other art critics.

Style

The style of abstract impressionism focusses on the portrayal of real life subjects- typically situated close to the artist themselves- through simplification and abstraction. This technique is used primarily by Impressionists. Abstract impressionists, however, "did not hesitate to apply innovative techniques to their painting, considered revolutionary at the time".

  • Bernard Cohen
  • Harold Cohen
  • Sam Francis
  • Patrick Heron
  • Nicolas de Staël
  • Milton Resnick
  • Richard Pousette-Dart
  • Jean-Paul Riopelle
  • William Duvall
  • Phillip Guston
  • Jackson Pollock
  • Willem de Kooning
  • Joan Mitchell
  • Nell Blaine
  • Robert Goodnough
  • Jan Müller
  • Ray Parker
  • Ad Reinhardt
  • Bradley Walker Tomlin
  • Janet Sobel

Notable artworks

  • Sam Francis: Black and Red
  • Julius Reque: Abstract Impressionism in Photography
  • Bernard Cohen: In That Moment
  • Nicolas de Staël: Etude de Paysage (Landscape Study)
  • Harold Cohen: Before the Event
  • Patrick Heron: Azalea Garden

See also

  • Abstraction (art)
  • Abstract Art
  • Abstract Expressionism
  • American Abstract Artists
  • Art history
  • Cubism
  • Futurism
  • History of Painting
  • Impressionism
  • Informalism
  • Lyrical Abstraction
  • Representation (arts)
  • Western Painting

References