In fact, they would avoid such terms in describing their work. The device was so revolutionary that it led to an outburst of ridicule and accusations of immorality.” For this reason these artists were in no hurry to call themselves Impressionists. In fact, at a Russian Impressionist exhibit at the Imperial Academy in 1886, visitors stormed out in anger! One art critic at the exhibition made this comment about Nikolai Kuznetsov’s painting, Wild Flowers (1885): “The artist depicts a young woman standing on a hill with a bouquet, from a low horizon, against a background of sky and clouds. However, this shift from paintings with a strong narrative to those of a lighter note was not met favorably by the Russian public. By 1886 Russian artists were just starting to move away from heavy subject matter to embrace lighter themes of everyday life. These artists often worked in plein-air settings, giving their paintings a fresh, almost unfinished snapshot of life. European Impressionism rejected academic motifs and instead focused on the beauty of everyday reality void of a narrative or social criticism. In Russia during the 1880s, paintings with social commentary by the Wanderers and paintings in the style of Critical Realism were by far the most popular with the public. As in Scandinavia and Germany, the Russian Impressionists were indifferent to the spectrally pure paints and blue-violet shadows of the French. Unlike the French Impressionists, the Russian artists of the 1880s mixed their paints on the palette. There was a rejection of narrative and an aspiration towards “gratifying” visual appeal. Artists started creating dynamic and fragmentary compositions painted in an energetic, study-like manner. This period is considered the most romantic period in the history of Russian Impressionism. Never before had there been so many paintings of childhood or poetic scenes of the everyday lives of the Russian people. The Russian Impressionism of the 1880s reflects lyrical interpretations of life. Ilya Repin,“On Boundary Line: A Portrait of the Artist’s Wife and Children,” 1879, Tretyakov Gallery. In French, it means “to retain the energy to impress,” whereas the same word in Russian translates as “vpechatlenie,” which comes from the word “pechal” meaning “sorrow.” This is why you will notice that Russian Impressionism is more directed at the heart than to the eye. Even the very definition of the word “impression” holds a different meaning from French to Russian.

The French worked in brighter colors, whereas the Russians used a more complex system of mixing color. In the late 1870s the portraitist Ivan Kramskoi summed up the popular view of the European Impressionist movement when he said that it was nothing more than the “aspiration to fill the picture with light and color.” The Russian Impressionists clearly did not work in the same manner as the French Impressionists of the same period.

Unlike their European counterparts, Russian Impressionists did not challenge existing traditions - instead their paintings displayed extremely accomplished academic training. When European Impressionism first appeared in Russia it went virtually unnoticed. These artists also worked under numerous art groups including the World of Art, the Blue Rose, Jack of Diamonds and the Union of Artists. Because of this, Russian Impressionist and Post-Impressionist paintings can simultaneously be categorized under other movements such as Russian Symbolism, Cézannism, Neo-Primitivism and classic portraiture. There was an explosion of artistic theory in Russia between 18, during which time Russian artists mixed various styles together. Unlike in Europe where the movement was clear-cut, Impressionism had a much more complex evolution in Russia. Arkhip Kuindzhi, “Birch Grove,” 1879, oil on canvas, Tretyakov Gallery.

Russian portrait painter