Book excerpt: Impressionism has captured the imagination of people the world over since its first exhibition in Paris in 1874. People have long sought to understand how and why the Impressionists created their paintings and how their techniques might be replicated. Susie Hodge reveals the answers to these questions by assessing the techniques and styles of the great masters of Impressionism and showing how artists today can use their methods. An informative introduction explains how the Impressionist movement came about, explores its historical context, and defines the style and inspiration of the artists involved. The heart of the book, however, focuses on eight major Impressionist painters -- Monet, Pissarro, Renoir, Cassatt, Degas, Cezanne, Seurat and Van Gogh -- revealing how they worked and analyzing their well-known paintings. Each case includes step-by-step demonstrations that show the reader exactly how to re-create Impressionist painting details in appropriate style.