Claude Monet, Nympheas 1907

Monet was one of the founding members of impressionism, and probably its most well known member. With the other members of the movement he helped formulate the basis of the movement. The key principle of impressionism is to paint by looking at color instead of line or form. The color defines the form. Monet would look at spots of color and paint each spot. The overall form of the object is of secondary importance. In the case of Nympheas above, this creates creates soft outlines which give the painting a dreamlike quality. Light is also very important in Monet's work. Monet's unique contribution to impressionism is his "series" work, in which he would paint the same subject at different times of day to capture the changing light. In all of Monet's work his real goal was to capture light and color in a way which broke a scene down into its visual essence.