1880s Art

               Art in the 1880s was influential to the image America portrayed. The reason being is that many artists painted their surroundings. Their paintings were a reflection of their environment and what society was experiencing at that time. The 1880s was a time when many began to paint landscapes, still life and portraits due to two famous movements, American Impressionism and Tonalism. Some famous artists of that time were Theodore Robinson and James Whistler.

               American Impressionism emerged from the French in the late 1870s and the beginning of the 1880s. It was a new style of art and emphasized brightness and “capturing the moment” of events. For example a famous painting is Low Tide by Theodore Robinson. This painting shows the use of visible brush strokes, the use of light colors, and movement. Another style of painting was Tonalism. Tonalism was pretty much the opposite of Impressionism and wasn’t so famous in the beginning but later became an important movement. Tonalism derived from the French Barbizon style and was mostly paintings of landscapes with dark tones such as grey, brown, blues, and neutral hues. A famous painting was Snowy Haystacks by Georges Inness. He was one of the leaders in painting Tonalism.

               Another famous leader of Tonalism was James Abbott McNeill Whistler. He was born in America and went to study in Paris in 1855. One ofhis most popular paintings was Arrangement in Grey and Black: The Artist’s Mother also known as Whistler’s Mother. Some of his influences were the people around him and the Franco-Prussian War. Whistler’s goal was to communicate his idea of “art for art’s sake”, meaning art is not to entertain, it has a truth, a larger meaning depending on the arrangement.

                Mary Cassatt was an American painter as well who spent most of her adult life in France where she became known as an impressionist along with the famous Edgar Degas. She created “images of the social and private lives of women” and intimate bonds between mothers and their children or children alone. For example one of her most famous paintings is Tea in which the art piece shows vivid colors and two girls having tea. Mary Cassatt was recognized for her talent then and is still today.

                In conclusion, American Impressionism and Tonalism introduced new styles of art. Art was a reaction of what was happening in America of that time. We owe it to the famous painters because without their talent America would have been shaped differently.

Bibliography:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Cassatt

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Impressionism

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_McNeill_Whistler