Mary Cassatt was the only American woman to be actively involved as an artist in the late nineteenth century French avant-garde art movements. While this work is not traditionally impressionistic, especially as it is a drypoint print rather than a painting, it shares many similarities in tone and style to the works of the Impressionists Cassatt worked so closely with in France. Most notably, the influence of Japanese art, the everyday subject, and the free lines are hallmarks of Impressionism as an artistic movement.

Image is in the public domain, accessed through Wikipedia Media Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mary\_Cassatt\_-\_The\_Coiffure\_-\_NGC\_29882.jpg

Mary Cassatt was the only American woman to be actively involved as an artist in the late nineteenth century French avant-garde art movements. While this work is not traditionally impressionistic, especially as it is a drypoint print rather than a painting, it shares many similarities in tone and style to the works of the Impressionists Cassatt worked so closely with in France. Most notably, the influence of Japanese art, the everyday subject, and the free lines are hallmarks of Impressionism as an artistic movement.

Image is in the public domain, accessed through Wikipedia Media Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mary\_Cassatt\_-\_The\_Coiffure\_-\_NGC\_29882.jpg

It is widely known that in The Meeting, Gustave Courbet painted himself, his art dealer Alfred Buyas, and Buyas' servant Calas, largely because of how accurate Courbet's depictions were. Even without the background knowledge, many things indicate the status of Calas. His clothes are shabbier than his companion's, and he defers to the figure in the middle with his head bowed.

This painting, The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons, was one of the key paintings that helped develop J. M. W. Turner's later style. While Turner always preferred sweeping landscapes with dramatic brushwork, by the 1830s, Turner was capturing natural disasters such as this fire with more abstract forms and innovative lighting techniques. The 1834 fire at Britain's Parliament, which engulfed both the seat of government and a large swath of London, was a natural subject for Turner to use these new techniques.

Figure: The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons by J. M. W. Turner (1834-5)

Fitting for an official portrait of the country's greatest military hero, Sir Thomas Lawrence's portrait of General Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington, portrays him in a serious, uncompromising position. His serious demeanor is paired with his stiff pose, showing his arms crossed in front of him. In this portrait, Wellington is presented simply in front of a plain background, with little but his uniform to accent his own image and pose.

Figure 3: Napoleon Crossing the Alps by Jaques-Louis David (1801)

Figure 4: Portrait of Sir Arthur Wellesley, First Duke of Wellington by Sir Thomas Lawrence (1814)

It is widely known that in The Meeting, Gustave Courbet painted himself, his art dealer Alfred Buyas, and Buyas' servant Calas, largely because of how accurate Courbet's depictions were. Even without the background knowledge, many things indicate the status of Calas. His clothes are shabbier than his companion's, and he defers to the figure in the middle with his head bowed.

John Singer Sargent painted his "Madame X," the socialite Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau, in a black dress in a simple room with no accessories. The use of the black dress stands in stark contrast to the subject's pale skin, which also emphasizes just how much of the subject's skin Sargent is exposing by painting her in such a dress.

Image: Portrait of Madame X by John Singer Sargent (1883-4)

Fitting for an official portrait of the country's greatest military hero, Sir Thomas Lawrence's portrait of General Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington, portrays him in a serious, uncompromising position. His serious demeanor is paired with his stiff pose, showing his arms crossed in front of him. In this portrait, Wellington is presented simply in front of a plain background, with little but his uniform to accent his own image and pose.

Figure 3: Napoleon Crossing the Alps by Jaques-Louis David (1801)

Figure 4: Portrait of Sir Arthur Wellesley, First Duke of Wellington by Sir Thomas Lawrence (1814)

This painting, The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons, was one of the key paintings that helped develop J. M. W. Turner's later style. While Turner always preferred sweeping landscapes with dramatic brushwork, by the 1830s, Turner was capturing natural disasters such as this fire with more abstract forms and innovative lighting techniques. The 1834 fire at Britain's Parliament, which engulfed both the seat of government and a large swath of London, was a natural subject for Turner to use these new techniques.

Figure: The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons by J. M. W. Turner (1834-5)

John Singer Sargent painted his "Madame X," the socialite Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau, in a black dress in a simple room with no accessories. The use of the black dress stands in stark contrast to the subject's pale skin, which also emphasizes just how much of the subject's skin Sargent is exposing by painting her in such a dress.

Image: Portrait of Madame X by John Singer Sargent (1883-4)