Inventing Impressionism

The National Gallery present the UK’s first major exhibition devoted to the man who discovered the Impressionists.

So universally popular are the Impressionists today, it’s hard to imagine a time when they weren’t. But in the early 1870s they struggled to be accepted. One man, however, recognised their worth from the beginning. Paul Durand-Ruel, an entrepreneurial art dealer from Paris, discovered this group of young artists and dedicated the rest of his life to building an audience for their work – creating the modern art market in the process.

‘Inventing Impressionism’ features 85 masterpieces from the movement, including works by Monet, Degas, Manet, Renoir, Pissarro and Sisley, all of whom Durand-Ruel discovered and promoted.