"Impressionism: Treasures from the National Collection of France"
2005-02-05 until 2005-03-10
Hong Kong Museum of Art
Hong Kong, , CN China

Reciprocating the celebrated cultural exchange programme Year of China in France in 2004, the next significant cultural event coming up is the Year of France to be held in China. A highlight of this programme will be the exhibition Impressionism: Treasures from the National Collection of France, which showcases around 47 impressionist masterpieces selected from the prestigious Musee dOrsay in Paris and other major French museums. Exhibits will include internationally acclaimed and much loved masterpieces of the impressionist school, such as Manets The fifer, Degass The dance class and Monets Water lilies, as well as other works by these artists and by Pissarro, Sisley and Czanne, etc.

Interpreting impression as an impression at a glance or frozen in time, these artists turned their back on traditional subjects - historical events, mythology and religious themes - and instead recorded the cityscapes, daily life as well as charming scenes of nature in the post-Industrial Revolution Europe of the 19th century. Breaking away from the rules of conventional painting techniques, they used vigorous, painterly brushwork and looked to the magical play of lights and colours as they searched for a more atmospheric effect. The invention of photography and the introduction of Japanese prints at this time also inspired the artists interest in space and composition and drove them to experiment with new techniques to render the world. The impressionists thus played a major role in raising the curtain on modern 20th century art.

Edouard Manet (1832 - 1883)
The fifer 1866
Oil on canvas
161 cm x 97cm
Musee dOrsay

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