America’s Impressionism: Echoes of a Revolution

As American artists—often having trained in France—returned home in the late nineteenth century, they put a distinctly American twist on the Impressionist style of painting, creating a new genre and teaching it to subsequent generations of artists. America’s Impressionism: Echoes of a Revolution explores this history, bringing together more than sixty works to show this important evolution in American painting.

At SAMA, America’s Impressionism will include additional examples of work by Texas artists, underscoring the deep connections between the state and this American art movement. This includes paintings by Julian Onderdonk, Dawson Dawson-Watson, and José Arpa, among others, drawn either from the Museum’s collection or on loan from others. In addition, in a presentation exclusive to SAMA, the Museum will also present selections from the San Antonio–based Halff Collection, one of the most important collections of American Impressionism in private hands. Organized by SAMA in collaboration with the Brandywine River Museum in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, and the Dixon Gallery and Gardens in Memphis, Tennessee, the exhibition is accompanied by a catalogue published in conjunction with Yale University press, which includes a full complement of color plates and new essays by the exhibition’s curators.