In 1874, a group of artists organized an independent exhibition in Paris rather than relying on the official Salon. Their work differed, but many shared an interest in contemporary subjects, visible brushwork and unstable effects of light.
A critic seized on the title of Monet's Impression, Sunrise to mock the exhibition. The label 'Impressionist' stuck. What began as ridicule soon became a convenient name for a new kind of painting.
The breakthrough was not simply loose brushwork. Railways, newly developed pigments, changing leisure habits, photography and the remaking of Paris all shaped what these artists painted and how they moved through the city and countryside.
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