Impressionism combined a set of unique techniques, that were largely known before, but were never utilised all together. Impressionists favoured the use of short and thick strokes rather than long lines.

Colours were use next to each other to create as much contrast as possible, this technique was used instead of mixing because it made the colours more striking. However, paint was allowed to be used on top of still wet paint in order to create a mixture of colours.

The use of black paint was avoided, instead, complementary colours were used to create shade. Impressionism doesn’t make use of paint’s transparency. Shadows were often painted using darker shades of blue. Impressionist artists sometimes used oil but mostly paint on canvas, the ground of the chosen canvas became lighter over time as artists favoured brighter colours.