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impressionism

 - 3 dictionary results

im⋅pres⋅sion⋅ism

[im-presh-uh-niz-uhm]
–noun
1. Fine Arts.
a. (usually initial capital letter) a style of painting developed in the last third of the 19th century, characterized chiefly by short brush strokes of bright colors in immediate juxtaposition to represent the effect of light on objects.
b. a manner of painting in which the forms, colors, or tones of an object are lightly and rapidly indicated.
c. a manner of sculpture in which volumes are partially modeled and surfaces roughened to reflect light unevenly.
2. a theory and practice in literature that emphasizes immediate aspects of objects or actions without attention to details.
3. a late-19th-century and early-20th-century style of musical composition in which lush harmonies, subtle rhythms, and unusual tonal colors are used to evoke moods and impressions.

Origin:
1880–85; impression + -ism; cf. G Impressionismus, F impressionnisme
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To impressionism
im·pres·sion·ism   (ĭm-prěsh'ə-nĭz'əm)   
n.  
  1. often Impressionism A theory or style of painting originating and developed in France during the 1870s, characterized by concentration on the immediate visual impression produced by a scene and by the use of unmixed primary colors and small strokes to simulate actual reflected light.

  2. A literary style characterized by the use of details and mental associations to evoke subjective and sensory impressions rather than the re-creation of objective reality.

  3. Music A style of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, using somewhat vague harmony and rhythm to evoke a mood, place, and natural phenomena.

  4. The practice of expressing or developing one's subjective response to a work of art or to actual experience.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Cultural Dictionary

impressionism

A style of painting associated mainly with French artists of the late nineteenth century, such as Edgar Degas, Edouard Manet, Claude Monet, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir. Impressionist painting seeks to re-create the artist's or viewer's general impression of a scene. It is characterized by indistinct outlines and by small brushstrokes of different colors, which the eye blends at a distance. Soft, pastel colors appear frequently in impressionist paintings.

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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