{"id":1047,"date":"2023-11-20T17:44:42","date_gmt":"2023-11-20T16:44:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/negativnacestach.cz\/?p=1047"},"modified":"2026-07-23T13:00:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-23T11:00:13","slug":"impressionism-in-photography","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/negativnacestach.cz\/en\/impressionism-in-photography\/","title":{"rendered":"Impressionism in photography? Do you have it? And could I see it?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Dream \u2014 Imogen Cunningham<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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When? Why?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Photography didn't have it easy at first. Before its invention, painting was the only way of capturing reality, and painters were naturally afraid of losing their privileged position and ending up painting living rooms. Everyone is a general after the battle, and we now know that's nonsense - but it's an interesting analogy to today's rise of artificial intelligence and the false prophets heralding the extinction of photographers (Photography<\/em> is dead! Burn the cameras! Welcome our new AI overlords!<\/em><\/em>). I won't poke with the tripod into the wasp's nest, though; that's material for another article.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anyway, photographers were initially bullied by the paintbrush people and their art was considered inferior to theirs. Determined to put themselves on a par with their oppressors, they decided to create a visual direction that brought photography closer to painting - pictorialism was born. Or maybe it was a little different, too. Or maybe not. 1885 is far enough away, who remembers, right? The movement is divided into four developmental phases<\/a> and had its biggest boom by the time of the First World War, after which harsh reality came in and there was no mood for dreamy thingies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, it would be unreasonable to attribute the nascency of this movement solely to painters being pissed off\u2014pictorialism has a distinctive and appealing aesthetic and even today finds many followers without the fear of being stabbed with a paintbrush in broad daylight.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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What is it?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The use of pictorialism is accompanied by the use of so-called noble printing methods and especially soft-drawing optics. These were often meniscus-like and very simple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n