Teacher: Now that we have learned about the elements of Impressionism, let’s look at two paintings to see which one is in the Impressionist style.
Teacher: Looking at the portrait, can you tell me who this person is?
Students: That is George Washington, the first President of the United States.
Teacher: We need to decide whether this is a “painting of everyday life.” Is a president of the United States a person we would see in our everyday lives? For example, would you see them in the grocery store or taking a walk on your street?
Students: Nooooo! The president is an important person who we do not see around town.
Teacher: How about the painting with the people walking in the countryside. Is this something people might do on a regular basis if they live in an area that looks like this.
Students: Yes! People often go for walks around their neighborhoods. Or sometimes they go to the forest or a garden to take a walk.
Teacher: Raise your hand if you think the portrait of George Washington or the people going for a walk is a painting of everyday life. Looks like the people taking a walk received the most votes.
Teacher: The next characteristic is “images are not crystal clear -- they are more like an “impression” of a scene.” Can you see the faces and clothes of the people walking in the countryside?
Students: Nooooo… I can’t see any details about the people. They are really small and look kind of blurry.
Teacher: How about the portrait of George Washington?
Students: Really clear with lots of details. It looks like a photograph, very real looking. I can even see the buckles on his shoes and the design of the table leg.
Teacher: Raise your hand if you think the George Washington portrait is crystal clear. How about the walking in the woods painting? Looks like the people walking painting is the one that is not crystal clear.
Teacher: Let’s talk about the shadows and shade. In which painting did the artist depict the shadows and shade?
Students: I can see the shadows and shade in the path where the people are walking.
Teacher: What do you think is casting those shadows?
Students: I think those are shadows of the tall trees.
Teacher: Exactly! Do you see shadows in the portrait?
Students: Nooooo. The room just looks kind of dark.Teacher: What about the sunshine?
Students: In the painting of the people walking, the sky looks really sunny, and there is sunshine on the path. In the portrait, there is just a little bit of the daylight peeking through the opening in the curtain. Otherwise, the only light is coming from inside the room.
Teacher: Sounds like the country scene is the one with the shadows, shade, and sunshine.
Teacher: Now we have to look to see if the brush strokes are visible. This means that the artist used their brush to make little lines, dots, or marks which we can see because the colors are not all blended together to give a smoother appearance. For example, when we look at the bushes and high grass, do you can see little lines, dots, or marks to give the impression of different types of plants? (You can point out these areas to the right of the path and in the lower lefthand corner of the painting.)
Students: Oh, yeah. I see those marks.
Teacher: How about the portrait of George Washington? Are any of the brush strokes visible or are the colors blended together?
Students: No brush strokes in the portrait.
Teacher: Looks like we believe the landscape painting has the brush strokes that we can see.
Teacher: Do you notice a sense of movement in these paintings?
Students: Yes, the people are walking on the path. But the portrait of Washington does not show any movement. He looks like is standing very still, like a statue.
Teacher: Good observations!
Teacher: So, class, what is our conclusion? Which painting had the characteristics of Impressionism?
Students: Definitely, the country scene is an Impressionist painting!
Teacher: Great job! You are right! (Click to second slide which shows the landscape painting with a circle around it.) Now you know all about the Impressionist painting style and can look for these characteristics in other paintings.
