Impressionism: 150 years

On 15 April 15 1874, what would come to be known as the First Impressionist Exhibition opened at 35, Boulevard des Capucines, Paris. For thirty days until 15 May, the exhibition showcased 165 pieces of radical contemporary art, selected and created by members of the Société anonyme des peintres, sculpteurs et graveurs, a group which had banded together in December 1873 as a reaction to the strict acceptance rules of the Paris Salon. Its members included Camille Pissarro, Claude Monet, Alfred Sisley, Edgar Degas, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Paul Cezanne, Armand Guillaumin and Berthe Morisot. This catalogue of artists – then a group of pioneering outsiders, now household names – together invented a movement that would change the course of art, and what we have come to expect from it, forever.  

Received with spirited and varied critical response, seven further Impressionist exhibitions would take place over the following years, each instrumental in defining the movement and promoting the work of the unsung artists. In addition to the Société members, Edouard Manet, Gustave Caillebotte, and the young Paul Gauguin exhibited their works; so too did female artists Mary Cassatt and Eva Gonzalès. With an impact far wider than Paris, and the eight Impressionist exhibitions held there between 1874 and 1886, the movement continues to shape understandings of art throughout the world. In New York, London, and online, the Selling Exhibition Impressionism: 150 Years pays homage to the movement, its origins and its legacy. 

Viewings available upon request in New York and London.

Explore selling exhibitions at Christie’s.