The bridge to French Impressionism from Academism was at the village of Barbizon, near the forest of Fontainebleu, with painters who were active between 1830 and 1880. At Barbizon, these French painters established the first art colony in western culture. Although their work varied in style and content, they shared innovative commitments that opened doors to Impressionism. The most revolutionary of their common pursuits was plein-air painting, facilitated by the invention in the 1840s of malleable-lead paint tubes. Also they diluted realism by experimenting with the effects of light and by conveyance of shapes through blocks of color arrangements. Tonalism, most associated with Corot, was the prevalent style that emerged and was achieved with somber colors and muted delineation that suggested fading light, misty weather, and a time for quiet and meditation.