In 1874, the first Impressionist exhibition was held at 35 Boulevard des Capucines, in the former studio of the photographer Gasper-Félix Tournachon. Edgar Degas, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro, Alfred Sisley, Paul Cézanne, and of course, Claude Monet, were among the exhibitors. The aim was simple: to challenge the monopoly of the Paris Salon. One hundred and fifty years later, this group of “fringe” painters is a pantheon of late–19th–century art. To celebrate Impressionism’s 150th anniversary, a Monet retrospective that covers the breadth of his career is coming to Japan. Paintings from his “Haystack” series at Giverny are among the masterpieces heading East. —Elena Clavarino