Artists by Movement: Tonalism
America, circa 1880 to 1910
Tonalism is a style of painting in which landscapes are depicted in soft light and shadows, often as if through a colored or misty veil. Imported to the U.S. by American painters inspired by Barbizon School landscapes, it was a forerunner to the many schools and colonies of American Impressionism which arose in the first part of the 20th century.
The most influential practitioners of the style were George Inness, whose roots were in landscape painting, and James McNeill Whistler, whose approach was primarily aesthetic, aiming for elegance and harmony in the colors of a painting.
Tonalism's soft-edged realism also had an influence on the photography of the early 20th century - specifically on Alfred Stieglitz and his circle.
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