[1][2] It involves the painting of a subject such as real-life scenes, objects, or people (portraits) in an Impressionist style, but with an emphasis on varying measures of abstraction.

[2] The movement works delicately between the lines of pure abstraction (the extent of which varies greatly) and the allowance of an impression of reality in the painting.

[4] The term, after being coined by Elaine de Kooning,[4] is considered to have been popularised by artist and critic Louis Finkelstein to describe the works of Philip Guston, in order to distinguish his art from that of the growing field of Abstract Expressionism.

[5] Phillip Guston's rise within artistic and social spheres in the mid 1950s was a determining factor in the development and profiling of abstract impressionism.

Alan Bowness, a critic of the show, recalled Nicolas de Staël, Peter Lanyon, and Sam Francis to be participating artists in the exhibition.

[8][9] Despite this controversy, abstract impressionism has been considered an ideological opposition to the other post-war movements of the era- specifically its growing countermovements, Cubism and Futurism.

[3] Whilst Futurism focussed on rejecting the art of the past,[10] abstract impressionism sought to incorporate techniques from numerous movements before it.

[3] Abstract impressionists paintings have been described to resemble late-Impressionist pictures in their technique, like those of Monet,[1] but without the representative content that usually defines Impressionism.

[3] However, abstract impression deviates from traditional en plain air artworks[2] as the level of exactness or realism in the painting is seen to be less important than overall atmospheric effect.

[2] Traditional Impressionist work, in its reflection of reality, often used gentle, bright, and complementary colours to mirror the outdoor setting and light sources.