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How did Claude Monet's name become synonymous with Impressionism? What factors conspired to make him the artist who most often comes to mind when we think of Impressionist art? In this session, we will consider the initial reception of the paintings of Monet and his fellow artistes indépendants (independent artists) who exhibited their work at the eight so-called Impressionist exhibitions starting in 1874. How did the virulent derision with which their work was met transform over time into praise? Using Monet   and a certain famous Leonardo portrait of a Renaissance lady   as a case study, we will learn how the reputations of art collectors, the timing of their bequests, the exposure certain collections continue to receive, and even biological phenomena play a central role in canon formation, thus establishing certain artists  names over others.

Presented by Giulia Bernardini, M.A., art historian and instructor of humanities at the University of Colorado, Boulder.