French Art En Plein Air
An investigation of the famous French art form.
As the colors of summer start drifting into the warm breeze of fall, we wanted to take a moment to appreciate some French Art En Plein Air. For all you art buffs out there, you will enjoy this journey through the impactful things that French artists did to change the course of art history forever. I hope this inspires you and, who knows, maybe we'll catch you in Central Park with your French Box Easel this fall?
En Plein Air is a French expression and term used in Art meaning 'in the open air.' This phrase became popular in the mid-19th century when art schools, such as the Barbizon School, stressed the importance of their oil painters to head outdoors (in natural light) to recreate the nature around them in their paintings. This also became a popular method of painting with the introduction of paint tubes in the 1840's. In that time, artists were required to hand make their oil paints by mixing dry pigments with linseed oil. All of that changed when paint tubes were invented (which is how we buy oil paints in art stores today). These tubes made life easier for artists to travel with their art supplies during en plein air projects and sparked another invention known as the French Box Easel. These boxes could be considered the 'briefcase' for most artists and contained a simple pair of wooden legs and an easel to prop up a canvas to paint on. To this day, a visit to France will likely consist of a gorgeous view and a few artists on the side streets with their wooden box easels painting away.
Try practicing your French vocabulary by listening to the words below and saying them out loud:
En Plein Air - In the open air
Une Toile - Canvas
Peinture à l'huile - Oil Paint
Un Chevalet - Easel
Peindre - To paint
Let's continue to dive deeper and paint a picture of the artists that made French En Plein Air what we know it to be today. Highly celebrated painters such as Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro, & Pierre-Auguste Renoir were among the leaders who fashioned en plain air, making it famous through their independent exhibitions of 'Impressionist' work. Together they created the art movement Impressionism & caused quite a stir in the art community of the time. Working en plein air was outlandish due to the fact that landscapes & portraits were usually painted in a studio. However, they took art further by portraying the transient sunlight depicted through short, visible brush strokes - evoking the feeling of a passing of time. To give you a better idea, take a peak at some of their work below:
Arm of the Seine near Vetheuil - Claude Monet (Image: www.wikiart.org)
Impression Sunrise - Claude Monet (Image: www.wikiart.org)
Road at Eragny, Winter - Camille Pissarro (Image: www.wikiart.org)
Windmill at Knokke, Belgium - Camille Pissarr0 (Image:www.wikiart.org)
Alphonsine Fournasie on the Isle of Chatou - Pierre-Auguste Renoir (Image: www.wikiart.org)
Beaulieu - Pierre-Auguste Renoir (Image: www.wikiart.org)
Today, we celebrate the work of these great artists in numerous art museums around the world. French Art Plein Air & Impressionism are of the most prolific moments in art history and from it, came great masterpieces, oil paint tubes, and French Box Easels. Can you remember the last time you saw some great Impressionist work? Don't forget to tell us all about it the comments section below (all comments en Français get bonus points)!
Looking to learn more French language and culture? Visit our website for our latest Group Class schedule, Private Lessons, and other services - www.jplinguistics.com.
Funny French Idioms
Impress native speakers with your knowledge of these fun French idiomatic phrases.
If you speak French (or are learning), you'll know that some expressions used in the language can be quite humorous when translated verbatim from French to English. That's why we wanted to brighten your day with Funny French Idioms, phrases the French use which can translate unexpectedly. Next time you find yourself in these real life scenarios, try using French idioms to stir the conversation!
1. It's not all about size... or is it? Perhaps you are a person who is shorter than most people your age, or maybe you know someone who is. Often, this height difference might stir a few jokes from a friend who might say to you 'Vous êtes haut comme trois pommes.' This statement is a clear indication that someone may be making fun of your size. In French, this phrase is a way of saying 'You are vertically challenged.' However, this isn't exactly the literally translation. The common phrase 'Être haut comme trois pommes' actually equates to 'To be tall like 3 apples' (which is pretty small). So, the next time you interact with a 'vertically challenged' person try incorporating this clever phrase! It's a head turner.
2. If you have a knack for recognizing natural French accents, this idiom is for you. There are instances where a non-native speaker will try to converse in French as naturally as possible, but feel shy and pause mid-sentence to say 'pardonnez mon accent, mais...' (excuse my accent, but...). If speaking to a French native, the listener might respond with a little sarcasm and say 'Non, non, vous parlez parfaitement le français. Est-ce que vous êtes français?” (No, no, you speak perfect French. Are you French?). A clever non-native speaker in this scenario might think to themselves 'he/she must be pulling my leg' in which the following phrase would be appropriate - 'Vous vous payez ma poire?' (the common French idiom meaning 'Are you pulling my leg?'). Technically though, this phrase translates to 'Are you buying yourself my pear?' which could be confusing to non-native speakers, yes, but to the French it makes perfect sense! In any case, next time someone is being sarcastic with you, try using this phrase to see if they are 'buying your pear!'
3. Keeping in theme with pears, there is another idiom the French love to use whenever someone is having a really good time. The phrase is 'se fendre la poire' and technically translates as 'to split the pear' but means 'to split one's sides' (or to laugh extremely hard or have a really good time). If you are out somewhere with hilarious French-speaking friends and are really enjoying yourself, slip in the phrase 'On se fend la poire là, non?' (We're having a ball, aren't we?).
These simple, funny French idioms are often used among friends and are a great way to practice your French. Do you know any French idioms? Make sure to post them in the comments section below and help continue the conversation. Also, you can post them on our Twitter using #jplingo @jplinguistics!