Sunlight and Shadow: American Impressionism, 1885-1945

Krasl Art Center

St. Joseph, MI

616-983-0271

Sunlight and Shadow: American Impressionism, 1885-1945

October 3 - November 21, 1999

The Krasl Art Center is pleased to present Sunlight and Shadow: 1885-1945. This exhibition includes seventy-eight Impressionist works rendered in oil, watercolor and pastels, dating from 1885 to 1945. The works will be on display through November 21, 1999. (left: Grandin, The Sargent)

When Claude Monet began painting in what is now known as the Impressionist style, he was seeking to depict a moment in time. Little did he imagine he was actually creating a century-long movement which would ignite the imagination of artists from France and the rest of Europe to America.

Imported from France just prior to the turn of the century, the movement underwent fundamental changes as it made its way across the Atlantic. Lacking the impetus, which caused it to arise in France in the late 1800s, Impressionism became more of a style than a cause. (left: George E. Wing (1853-1932), Winter Light, Wareham, Mass., c. 1895, oil on canvas)

In most American artist's hands the French rebellion against the artificiality and polish of academic painting was lost. On these shores American artists went straight to the heart of the movement's enduring appeal. American artists applied the idea of squaring off intense color oppositions to create an exuberant and immediate sense of color and light to the American landscape. The ever-changing conditions of the sky and sunlight offered landscapists the opportunity to capture the unique sunlight and shadow of each of the four seasons. (right: Stevens, Gloucester Harbor)

Although its focus is on Impressionist landscape painting, the exhibit is not entirely made up of landscapes but also contains still life and portrait paintings. A private collector through the Fuller Art Museum, Brockton, Massachusetts, has generously loaned this exhibition. With the assistance of Smith Kramer, Inc., a fine arts service company located in Kansas City, Missouri, the exhibition, organized by the Fuller Art Museum, will travel to approximately twenty museums across the United States over two years. (left: Berneker, Flowers, Backyard, Maine)

Read more about the Krasl Art Center in Resource Library Magazine

For further biographical information on selected artists cited above please see America's Distinguished Artists, a national registry of historic artists.

rev. 11/22/10

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