CLAUDE MONET - 3

Truth be told, Monet's paintings were not my favorite before this study.  Since learning about the painter and his painting style, it's just like in real life....what we don't know.....we don't understand.  

The Denver Art Museum is home to the most comprehensive United States exhibition of Monet paintings.  The Truth of Nature features over 120 paintings that focus on Monet's enduring relationship with Nature.  We will see how Monet, over time, abandons any human presence in the landscapes he created.  This is a testimony to his commitment to isolate himself in nature.  

The Artist's House at Argenteuil - 1873
(The Art Institute of Chicago)

Claude Monet and his family lived at Argenteuil, outside Paris, from 1871 to 1878.  He painted 259 pictures there, including over 150 for which Argenteuil and its surroundings were the subject matter.  This painting shows Monet's wife, Camille, standing in the doorway of their vine-covered house, while their son (still wearing a uni-sex dress) plays with a hoop in the garden.  The left side of the canvas depicts the garden, with trees, flowers and a tall dark tree in the background.  The right side shows a row of Oriental vases and the house, which casts a shadow over most of the painting.  Japanese art was a major influence on Claude Monet's art.  In this work, note his use of the color blue.

This is the backyard of the large house that Claude Monet was renting in the suburban town of Argeneuil, a 15-minute train ride down the river from Paris.  We can envision Monet setting up his easel behind the house, deliberately excluding the industrial smoke and steam.  Instead, we see a secluded garden, a mid-summer calm.  

Since we've started this art adventure, I've grown more eager to visit art museums.  Thank heaven for the internet, where virtual museum tours are available at no cost.