The Road to Impressionism: Landscapes from Corot to Manet
October 03, 2004–January 17, 2005
The innovations made by the painters associated with the Barbizon school led to the development of Impressionism. This exhibition explored the wide range of work of the Barbizon artists (including Théodore Rousseau, Jean-François Millet, Camille Corot, and Charles-François Daubigny), from forest scenes to stormy seascapes, from scenes of bright sunlight to atmospheric moonlight, and from moving pictures of peasant hardship to humorous depictions of leisurely boat trips. It focused on the importance of place for the Barbizon artists both in terms of their outdoors paintings and their studio works inspired by the process of memory. Drawn from the Walters’ collection and complemented by loans from the Baltimore Museum of Art, the exhibition presented 70 works of art, consisting of 40 paintings, 14 drawings, 12 prints, and 4 artists’ palettes. There was also an interactive gallery.