Great French artist-impressionist Claude Monet ( Oscar-Claude Coin), (1840-1926) loved to paint flowers. He painted flowers throughout his life, in different periods creativity. More often garden and wildflowers, less often - cut flowers in vases.
Flowers were his passion. Monet said that most of all in life he adores two things: painting and gardening. Therefore, he experienced the greatest pleasure when he depicted flowers in his paintings.
He always painted even his family members surrounded by flowers, thereby emphasizing his sincere love for them.
“Perhaps it was thanks to flowers that I became an artist,” Claude Monet said about himself.
One of early works Claude Monet "Women in the Garden", 1866-1867, Orsay Museum, Paris.
The figures of women are depicted on this canvas in a very stylized manner. The artist places all the emphasis on the play of light and shadow, on the foliage of trees and flowers. Monet is still looking for his own style; there are still five years left before the official date of the birth of impressionism.
The model for all three women was 19-year-old Camille Doncier, the future wife of Claude Monet.
The canvas is very large, its dimensions are 2.05 by 2.55 m.
The artist intended to exhibit this painting at the Paris Salon in 1967, but the jury rejected him.
At the end of Claude Monet’s life, when he was already a recognized and renowned master, the French government bought the painting “Women in the Garden” from the artist in 1921 for 200 thousand francs.
Saint Andresse
| "Terrace at Sainte-Andresse", ca. 1867, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. This painting depicts the artist’s family, who lived in the small port town of Saint-Andresse near Le Havre on the coast of Normandy. Monet's father and his aunt Madame Lecadre are sitting in armchairs. Monet's distant relative Jeanne-Margarita stands at the railing with a young man. You can say it's a family scene in the background seascape. But look how the flowers in the foreground of the picture are drawn! How successfully Monet conveyed the texture of colors and the play of light and shadows. |
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| "Garden in Bloom at Sainte-Andresse", ca. 1866, Orsay Museum, Paris. | |
| "Adolphe Monet Reading in the Garden of Le Coteaux at Saint-Andresse", c. 1866 |  |
| "Lady in the Garden", 1867, State Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg. The painting depicts Claude Monet's distant relative Jeanne-Marguerite Lecadre in the garden at Sainte-Andresse. |
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Argenteuil, 1872 - 1977
Claude Monet always wanted to have his own garden, where he could work peacefully en plein air.
At the end of 1871, Claude Monet and his family settled in Argenteuil. Then it was a small resort village near Paris, 12 km from the city center, located on the picturesque banks of the Seine. Argenteuil is now part of Greater Paris. In Argenteuil, Monet had his own house and his first garden. It seems to me that it was in Argenteuil that they were created best paintings Claude Monet. This was the brightest period of his work. Monet’s paintings are generally light, but it is in Argenteuil that his canvases simply glow with joy. Apparently these were the most happy years his life. Almost all the paintings painted in Argenteuil depict Camille, Claude Monet's beloved first wife.
In those years, Argenteuil was a favorite vacation spot for Parisians; sailing regattas were regularly held there. Led to Argenteuil railway, getting there from Paris was quick and easy. Not only Monet, but also other impressionist artists Manet, Renoir, Sisley, Caillebotte painted their landscapes in Argenteuil.
| The artist's friend Renoir captured him at work in Argenteuil, and thanks to this we can see what Claude Monet's garden was like and how he painted en plein air. Pierre Auguste Renoir "Monet painting in his garden at Argenteuil", 1873 |
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| And Edouard Manet painted a family portrait of the artist against the backdrop of a blooming garden. Edouard Manet "Monet's family in their garden at Argenteuil", 1874, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. The painting depicts Claude Monet tending flowers, his wife Camille and son Jean. Garden, flowers and chickens. In 10 years, Claude Monet will have all this in Giverny. |
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| Pierre Auguste Renoir "Madame Monet and her son", 1974. National Gallery, Washington. Camille Monet and her son Jean. This painting was kept in the collection of Claude Monet in Giverny. Youngest son the artist Michel Monet sold it in 1952 during a period of complete devastation in Giverny. After several resales under the will of the last owner in 1970, this painting entered the National Gallery in Washington. |
| "The Artist's House in Argenteuil", 1873. Art Institute, Chicago. |  |
| "Monet's Garden at Argenteuil", 1873 |  |
| "Houses in Argenteuil", 1873, Old National Gallery, Berlin. In summer, Argenteuil was literally buried in flowers. |
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| "Flowers on the River Bank at Argenteuil", 1877, Pola Museum of Art, Hakone, Japan. The Seine in Argenteuil is very picturesque, in this place it forms a beautiful bend. Claude Monet was fascinated by the river and nature of Argenteuil, he enthusiastically worked here in the open air. |
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| "Camille Monet on a bench in the garden." 1873 Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. As always, a garden, and as always, flowers. |
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| "Jean Monet on a horse-bicycle." 1872 Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Even when painting a portrait of his son, Claude Monet did not forget about flowers. He preferred to capture all the significant events of his life on his canvases against a background of flowers. |
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| "In the meadow", 1876 The canvas depicts the artist's wife Camille Monet reading a book in a meadow, surrounded by meadow flowers. |
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| "Apple trees in blossom", 1873. Amazing! |
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| "The Artist's Family in the Garden", 1875 |  |
| "In the Garden", 1875 This painting apparently depicts the same corner of the garden as the previous one, only a few months later - in the fall. |
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| "Woman with an Umbrella" ("Walking: Camille Monet with her son Jean"), 1875, National Gallery of Art, Washington. | |
| "Camille Monet with her son", 1875, Museum fine arts, Boston, USA. |  |
| "Garden Corner at Montgeron", approx. 1876, State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg. Montgeron is a small town in the suburbs of Paris, located 18.5 km southeast of the city center. Now it is one of the southeastern suburbs of Paris. |
 "Woman with an umbrella in a garden at Argenteuil", 1875. |
 "Walk, Argenteuil", 1875. |
 "A Walk in Argenteuil", 1875, Musée Marmottan-Monet, Paris. |
 "Garden", 1872. |
 "Camille Monet in the Garden", 1873. |
 "Camille Monet at the window. Argenteuil", 1873. |
 "Bank of the Seine near the bridge at Argenteuil", 1874. |
 "Camille and Jean Monet in the garden at Argenteuil", 1873. |
 "Camille Monet in the Garden of her House at Argenteuil", 1876, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. |
"Gladioli" OK. 1876. Institute of Arts, Detroit, USA. |
 "Girls in the Garden", 1875, National Gallery in Prague. |
 "Camilla with a Green Umbrella", 1876. |
 "Garden Gate at Vétheuil", 1876. |
 "Garden", 1876. |
 "Garden, Mallows", 1877. |
Very interesting series"Lilac". Compare:
Poppy fields
One of the most famous painting Claude Monet's "Field of Poppies" (1873, Orsay Museum, Paris) was painted in Argenteuil, not far from the artist's home. The painting depicts Monet's wife Camille and his son Jean. Presumably, his wife and son also served as models for the figures of the lady with the child in the background.
Look how expressively the artist painted scarlet poppies and yellow buttercups. Camille and Jean are literally buried in poppies, forming complete harmony with the nature of the sun summer day.
Monet chose a very good angle for his painting - scarlet poppies are located in the lower left part of the picture, diagonally along which Camille and Jean are walking. It feels like the poppies extend beyond the canvas.
Fields of poppies fascinated Monet. He returned to them several times in his work. He was attracted by the contrast of red poppies and green grass.
"Summer. Poppy field", 1875, private collection.
"Poppy field near Vetheuil" 1879.
"Field of poppies in a hollow near Giverny", 1885. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
"Field of poppies", circa 1890. State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg.
"Oat field with poppies", 1890. Museum contemporary art, Strasbourg.
"Field of poppies at Giverny." 1890-1891 Art Institute, Chicago.
"Field of red poppies near Giverny", 1895. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, USA.
Tulip fields
Claude Monet visited Holland several times. And, of course, I could not remain indifferent to tulips. He created a series of paintings depicting the main attractions of Holland - tulip fields and windmills.
"Tulip Fields at Sassenheim, near Leiden", 1886, Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, Massachusetts, USA.
"Tulip fields and windmills in Rheinsburg", 1886, private collection.
"Tulip fields in Holland", 1886. Orsay Museum, Paris.
"Tulip field in Holland." 1886, Musée Marmottan-Monet, Paris.
Vetheuil, 1879 - 1881
"The Artist's Garden at Vétheuil", 1880. National Gallery, Washington.
In 1879, Monet's family moved to Vétheuil, a small village on the banks of the Seine 65 km northwest of Paris. Here Claude Monet had his second son, Michel, but, unfortunately, his first wife Camille soon died.
The Monet family lived in Vétheuil until 1881.
Claude Monet meets the family of Alice Hoschedé, whom he had already known for several years. They live together, and Alice later became his second wife. But in the paintings of Claude Monet, Alice Goschede, unlike Camille, is very rare. Her daughters, Claude Monet's stepdaughters, served as models for the artist's paintings.
 "Flowers on the banks of the Seine near Vétheuil", 1880. |
 "Alice Goshede in the Garden", 1881. Future second wife of Claude Monet. |
 "Staircase at Vétheuil", 1881. |
"The Island of Flowers near Vetheuil", 1880, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. |
 "Flowers in Vétheuil", 1881. |
 "Flowers in Vétheuil", 1881. |
Flowers in a vase
Most of all, Claude Monet loved garden and wildflowers, but sometimes he also painted still lifes and bouquets of cut flowers.
"Spring flowers", 1864. The whereabouts of the painting are currently unknown.
Of course, it is still difficult to recognize the future great impressionist artist in this painting.
"Chrysanthemums", 1878. Orsay Museum, Paris.
"Bouquet of mallow", 1880.
"Sunflowers", 1881. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
"Chrysanthemums" 1882. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
"Purple Poppies", 1883. Museum Boijmans van Beuningen, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
"Anemones", ca. 1885, private collection.
"Two vases with chrysanthemums." 1888, private collection.
Giverny 1883 - 1926
In 1883, Claude Monet's family moved to Giverny. This is a small village in a picturesque area on the banks of the Epte River, at its confluence with the Seine, about 80 km from Paris. Claude Monet will live in Giverny for the rest of his life.
By this time he had already become famous artist and quite a wealthy person. In 1890, he was able to buy the house in Giverny where his family lived. He equipped a spacious workshop in the house.
Claude Monet significantly expanded his garden and built a pond in it, the water into which came from a special water intake tank built on the Epte River.
In those years, Claude Monet became interested in Japanese culture, Japanese prints, especially prints of the great Japanese artist Hokusai.
To care for the garden, Monet hired a Japanese gardener who helped him arrange the garden in Japanese style. Monet himself was directly involved in the planning of the garden. The artist subscribed to the magazine Revue horticole (Gardening Magazine) and ordered plants and flowers from different countries peace.
It was this garden that became main love V recent years artist's life. He worked in it, he wrote it in all forms, with different points, at different times of the day. The garden became the main source of inspiration for the artist.
Monet grew various flowers in the garden, water lilies grew in the pond, and the famous “Japanese Bridge” was thrown across the pond. He could spend hours admiring his garden, observing the slightest changes in lighting and weather.
In the fall of 1899, Claude Monet began painting his famous “Water Lilies” series, which he worked on until the end of his days.
Claude Monet in his garden with a pond of water lilies in the background, 1905.
Claude Monet in his garden, c. 1917 Photo: Etienne Clementel.
The pictures look a little “colored” and blurry, since these were stereoscopic photographs, they had to be viewed through special colored glasses, then the image would turn out three-dimensional.
Claude Monet (right) in his garden at Giverny. 1922 Photo from The New York Times archive.
The famous pond with water lilies and the Japanese bridge.
In the first canvases of the “Water Lilies” series, Claude Monet depicted a pond with a Japanese bridge, against the backdrop of lush garden vegetation.
IN latest works ah, depicting a pond with water lilies, he deliberately distorted all the accepted rules of perspective, abandoned the horizon line, and painted only water with water lilies. Water lilies floating on the water are often cut off by the borders of the canvas, creating the impression that the real pond is something larger than what is depicted in the painting.
This series of "Water Lilies" contains over 60 paintings.
| "Water lilies." 1906 Art Institute, Chicago. |  |
| "Water lilies", 1916. National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo. This huge, 2-meter canvas is one of the most expressive in the “Water Lilies” series. Pink and yellow islands of water lilies are located on the dark blue, dark green and even purple surface of the pond water. The picture is all in motion, we see the intertwining roots of water lilies. The water lily flowers themselves literally protrude above the surface of the water. Claude Monet felt nature very subtly and could convey all its subtleties and tints on his canvases. |
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| "Water lilies." 1920-26 Orangerie Museum, Paris. |
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In 1980, Claude Monet's house and garden in Giverny were opened to the public. Now this is one of the most favorite museums among tourists in the suburbs of Paris.
Claude Monet. Poppies. 1773 Musée D'Orsay, Paris
“Maki”, one of the most famous works Claude Monet, I saw in . However, I didn’t look at it properly then. As a fan, I was simply blown away by all the masterpieces that are in this museum!
Later, of course, I looked at “Poppies” properly. And I discovered that I hadn’t even noticed several interesting details in the museum. If you look at the picture more closely, you probably have at least three questions:
- Why are poppies like this? large sizes?
- Why did Monet depict two almost identical pairs of figures?
- Why didn't the artist draw the sky in the picture?
I will answer these questions in order.
1. Why are poppies so big?
Poppies are depicted very large. Most of them are as big as the head of the depicted child. And if you take the poppies from the background and bring them closer to the figures in the foreground, then they will be completely larger than the heads of both the child and the woman depicted. Why such unreality?
In my opinion, Monet deliberately increased the size of poppies: so he once again chose to convey a vivid visual impression rather than the realism of the depicted objects.
Here, by the way, one can draw a parallel with his technique of depicting water lilies in later works.
For clarity, look at fragments of paintings with water lilies different years(1899-1926). The top work is the earliest (1899), the bottom is the latest (1926). Obviously, over time, water lilies became more and more abstract and less detailed.
Apparently “Poppies” is just a harbinger of the predominance of abstractionism in Monet’s later paintings.
Paintings by Claude Monet. 1. Top left: Water lilies. 1899 G. Private collection. 2. Top right: Water lilies. 1908 g. Private collection. 3. Middle: Pond with water lilies. 1919 Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. 4. Bottom: Lilies. 1926 Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City.
2. Why are there two pairs of identical figures in the picture?
It turns out that it was also important for Monet to show movement in his painting. He achieved it in an unusual way, depicting a barely visible path on a hill among flowers, as if trodden between two pairs of figures.
At the bottom of the hill with poppies are his wife Camille and son Jean. Camilla is traditionally depicted with a green umbrella, just like in the painting “Woman with an Umbrella”.
Up on the hill is another pair of a woman and a child, for whom Camilla and her son most likely also posed. That's why the two couples are so similar.
Claude Monet. Poppies. Fragment. 1873 Musee D'Orsay, Paris.
This pair of figures on the hill is depicted perhaps solely for the visual effect of movement that Monet so strived for.
3. Why didn’t Monet paint the sky?
Another notable point in: notice how poorly the sky is drawn, right down to the bare areas of the canvas left behind.
Claude Monet. Poppies. Fragment. 1873
I can assume that the point is in the technique of impressionism itself: Monet painted paintings in a matter of hours and even minutes in order to depict the play of light and colors at a certain moment of the day. Therefore, there was not always enough time for all the elements of the landscape. Working out all the details is the job of studio work, not outdoor work.
By the way, the painting “Poppies” was also exhibited at the first impressionist exhibition in 1874, which I wrote about in more detail in the article
Impressionism appeared in France in the 1860s and upended traditional ideas about painting. Looking at the sunny, life-breathing and light-filled paintings of artists of this movement, it is difficult to believe that their works did not enjoy recognition for a long time and were considered a deviation from the canons of classical painting. "Around the World" invites you to travel around France and see how different corners countries are depicted in the works of impressionist artists.
Claude Monet. "Field of poppies at Argenteuil" (1873)
The painting “Field of Poppies...” was painted by Monet in Argenteuil, which is located just 10 kilometers from Paris and in the 19th century was a favorite vacation spot for residents of the capital. Monet and his family lived in this suburb for seven years and created many bright, full of flowers and colors of canvases.
In Argenteuil, the artist worked a lot in the open air: he was always attracted by the opportunity to depict on canvas a certain fragment of time, action and space. The painting “Field of Poppies at Argenteuil” reflects another passion of the artist - his love of flowers. Monet once even called his garden his main masterpiece.
This painting is clearly divided into several parts, the most important of which is the one that depicts scarlet flowers, contrasting with the empty right part of the canvas. We also see two couples painted with the artist’s wife Camille and his eldest son Jean. Their arrangement helps to structure the space of the picture and convey captured movement.
While working on the painting, Monet did not mix paints, but applied strokes different colors, which the human eye perceives as different color shades. At the same time, the artist painted more significant things more carefully. Thus, the emphasis here is on the flowers and the upper part of the human figures in the foreground, while the field on the right side of the picture and the sky are less clearly defined.
Pierre Auguste Renoir. "Bridge to Chatou" (1875)
Chatou is another picturesque corner of France, loved by artists of a new movement. It is often called the island of the impressionists, because at this point the Seine divides into two branches. Like neighboring Argenteuil, the town of Chatou in the 19th century had an atmosphere of cheerful ease and noisy activity.
People came here to swim, ride a boat or have a picnic, and these simple scenes were reflected in the paintings of the Impressionists. Father Fournaise's establishment under the Chatou bridge, where one could not only spend the night but also rent rooms, was Renoir's favorite place. It was in this establishment that the artist created his painting “The Rowers’ Breakfast”, in which he depicted his acquaintances and friends. In 1990, the Maison Fournaise restaurant was restored and now houses a small museum.
The painting "Bridge at Chatou" differs from most of Renoir's works. Unlike Monet, the artist loved to depict people much more, and also preferred a more saturated color palette. And yet “Bridge at Chatou” is a landscape in which people appear as fuzzy dark figures. The bridge is drawn more carefully than other elements, in addition, the popular boating is depicted here. The landscape is characterized by fuzzy lines and a smoky light-air environment. The lack of clearly defined human figures creates a feeling of distance, and the light and color palette help us see joy in the ordinary.
Frederic Basil. "Landscape on the banks of the Lez" (1870)
Thanks to the landscape of Basil, we travel from central France to the south, to the artist’s native region. Basil's name is much less widely known than those of his friends Monet and Renoir, since he died at the age of 28. “Landscape on the banks of the Lez” is one of the artist’s last works: soon after completing work on the canvas, Basil volunteered for the Franco-Prussian War, where he soon died.
The artist completed the landscape in record time short terms, it all took him a little more than two months. While working, Basil's relatives were away and did not distract him from the painting. In addition, he knew the area well. So, in a letter to his brother, he indicated exactly what place he depicted: “The bank of the Lez River near the mill near Navilau and the road to Clappier.”
The painting is very different from the landscapes of Monet and Renoir, since Basil preferred to paint the sun at its zenith, and also depict a harsh light, different from the weightless and smoky light on the canvases of his friends. Basil also uses bright contrasting colors, and is more precise and thorough when working on the details of the picture. Thanks to this, we can recognize in the canvas “Landscape on the banks of the Lez” trees and vegetation characteristic of the southern part of France.
Camille Pissarro. "Boildieu Bridge at Rouen on a Rainy Day" (1896)
Camille Pissarro went down in the history of impressionism as a master of the urban landscape. He painted several paintings depicting Rouen, located in northern France. Pissarro went to this city after seeing Claude Monet's cycle dedicated to the Rouen Cathedral.
Pissarro, like Monet, uses light and air when creating canvases. He is attracted by the possibility of depicting the city as a living organism that is in constant movement. He uses darker colors and thicker brush strokes, but his paintings look more realistic. The unusual perspective is often explained by the fact that Pissarro painted from a hotel window.
The artist sought to reflect on canvas the industrial features gradually emerging in the appearance of the city. This is what is interesting for Pissarro in Rouen, which, despite its exquisite architecture, late XIX century became a port city and industrial center.
Paul Cezanne. "View of the Bay of Marseille from Estac" (1885)
The landscape of Paul Cézanne again takes us back to the south of France, but at the same time it is completely different from the paintings already discussed. Cezanne's canvas even to an untrained viewer seems more daring than the works of other impressionists. It is no coincidence that the artist is often called the father of modern art.
Born in the south of the country, Cezanne often depicted southern landscapes in his paintings. The surroundings of the fishing village of Estac became one of his favorite subjects in his landscapes. In the 1880s, Cezanne, in an attempt to escape family troubles, came to Estac and painted about ten paintings in which he depicted the Bay of Marseille.
"View of the Bay of Marseille from Estac" is one of the culminating works of this period and allows us to see the features of Cézanne's painting that influenced Pablo Picasso. We are talking primarily about the artist’s special dense horizontal strokes, as well as the use of such deep and rich colors like orange-yellow. Cezanne manages to achieve a three-dimensional image of water through the use of different shades blue, as well as green and violet inclusions. Like other impressionists, Cezanne loved to paint the sea, sky and mountains, but in his image they seem more dense and clearly defined.