Abstract
This paper examines the artistic style known as impressionism from an aesthetic and historical perspective, with particular emphasis on the way in which the sociological and demographic changes of the Parisian metropolis contributed to the development of the revolutionary impressionist painting technique. It pays particular attention to three works of art, Renoirs "The Great Boulevards," Degas "Place de la Concorde," and Manets "A Bar at the Folies-Berg're," describing the way in which both the style and the subject of these paintings reflect the urban experience of late nineteenth-century Paris.

From the Paper
"The physical changes wrought by Baron Haussman upon the architecture of late nineteenth-century Paris provided an appropriate backdrop for a social and cultural revolution that profoundly influenced the relationships of the city's inhabitants and visitors both to one another and to the modern metropolis itself. That revolution was known in the art world as Impressionism. More so than any other type of visual expression, the artwork of the impressionist masters perfectly captured the essence of the changing face of Paris, reflecting the manner in which the experience of the metropolis defined both the style and the substance of great paintings. Three works of art in particular epitomize this relationship and are therefore deserving of special mention: Renoirs The Great Boulevards, Degas Place de la Concorde, and Manets A Bar at the Folies-Berg're. In addition to depicting the physical and social changes of the city, these paintings mirror the various emotional responses evoked by the modern metropolis and reflect the diverse relationships of the individual to the organic form of the city as a whole. Although the three paintings display different visions of urban life, they all seek to unify the contradictory and paradoxical elements of contemporary life under the transcendent theme of modernity. Renoirs The Great Boulevards conveys a sense of the duality of beauty, Degas Place de la Concorde draws a visual comparison between the flneur and the badaud, and Manets Bar at the Folies- Berg're presents the dichotomy of isolation and interaction within a social setting."

Tags:badaud, degas, duranty, flaneur, impressionism, manet, paris, renoir