The Barbizon school of painters were part of an art movement towards Realism in art, which arose in the context of the dominant Romantic Movement of the time. The Barbizon school was active roughly from 1830 through 1870. It takes its name from the village of Barbizon, France, near Fontainebleau Forest, where the artists gathered. Some of the most prominent features of this school are its tonal qualities, color, loose brushwork, and softness of form.