In the mid-nineteenth century, Arthur Rimbaud, the volatile genius of French poetry, invented a language that captured the energy and visual complexity of the modern world. This book explores some of the technical aspects of this language in relation to the new techniques brought forth by the Impressionist painters such as Monet, Morisot, and Pissarro.

Introduction 1 Language and Visual Realism in the Poesies 2 Unsettled Terrain. Realism and Impressionism 1860s - 1870s 3 Impressionism and the New Look 4 Vision, Visuality, Affect 5 After Poetry