In the middle of the 19th century, the art scene in France favored traditional art that was in keeping with accepted norms in content and style. Realistic use of color, and conservative brush work mirroring reality where traces of strokes were suppressed was preferred by commoners as well as galleries. One of the prominent artists who typically reflected the characteristics of the Impressionist was Claude Monet as he created artworks which truly depicted the realistic portrayal of natural scenes.

The impressionist artists adopted unique techniques in using light and brush strokes. Predominantly, the impressionist artworks consisted of landscapes and various other scenes or incidents that were worth representing (Gersh-Nesic, n.d.). Claude Monet was accredited for founding the Impressionist movement as the key characteristic of his artworks is that they are largely open-air painting that illustrates landscapes, bustling activity in Paris, and places in Normandy (Claude Oscar Monet biography, 2014). Monet’s painting Impression, Water lilies and Japanese Bridge was inspiration to the naming the movement Impressionism (Auricchio, 2014). The subjects of Monet’s painting chiefly consisted of his observations from surroundings and the places that he was familiar with. He used bigger canvases to work on his open-air sketches.