A restful intermission from the busyness of life, a time to eliminate stress by viewing the beautiful, blended colors of one of the most beloved painters to come from the Impressionist movement. Claude Monet is well loved and appreciated by modern viewers and copies of his paintings reflect the hues and emotions that many love to have in their homes.
Enjoy a meandering saunter among the paintings of Claude Monet.
‘Dans La Prairie’ by Claude Monet circa 1879
Respite in the Garden of Giverny
There is something restful, but at the same time alive, from the colors and feeling of a summer’s day in many of these paintings. Perhaps because so many of them were of gardens, flowers, along with the beauty of such sunny blue skies.
And so this lens inspection is dedicated to taking a few moments to stop and peer into the paintings of Claude Monet while listening to background sounds and thinking a bit about his painting and life.
Enjoy yourself here, pour yourself a glass of refreshment or a cup of tea and think light and cheerful thoughts as inspired by the colors and brushstrokes of Impressionism at its most blithe.
Monet’s garden at Vétheuil,
The Allure Of His Art
The Inspiration for the Monet Moment
I wanted to take a tour of this Master’s paintings because I think they produce a serenity in the viewer. A moment’s respite while looking at his paintings produces a visual calming, similar to the way some sounds and music de-stress us.
For me, I think it is partially in his palette, the way this painter layered his colors, partly in the technique of the brushstrokes that create the dreamy effect, and partly because of the subject matter that the overall feeling is one of quiet and repose. Of course, I have my favorites, but almost any of his works have a peaceful appeal.
Claude Monet’s ” Lady with a Parasol”
If I would pick my own personal favorites they would center within the water garden. I like the water lily paintings especially, perhaps for the same reason I like macro floral photographs. The larger than life look into the forms of the petals creates an almost abstract arrangement. The blues and greens predominate, and it is well known that those cool hues are restful and calming in effect.
It isn’t that I don’t like sharp edges or bright colors, I do! However, in a jarring modern age when the mind is overwhelmed with so much stimulation, I find it necessary to tone things down and relax with these soothing paintings. I put this lens view together in the hope that it has that effect for you, my visitor, too.
A Garden Is Art!
Nowhere is that more evident than in this place in Giverny, So much of the masterstrokes were rooted inside this particular place, although there are certainly many other venues that Claude Monet made famous with his works. In celebration of his garden I have taken a look at the flowers that made up the subject matter of the garden at Giverny.
Of Special Interest To Gardeners
Planting Plans and Color Harmonies
Book cover
For anyone who loves cottage gardens, this famous artist/gardener’s plans will be a priceless inspiration.
“Gardening was something I learned in my youth. I perhaps owe having become a painter to flowers” – Claude Monet
- Flowers of Giverny, Flowers that Monet Grew
Monet’s Giverny is one of the most famous cottage gardens filled with scenes created by the Master. Here are his flowers, so you can make your own masterpiece garden.
Passion – Coffee Table Book for those with a passion
Monet’s Passion
A gorgeous art book for those who love gardens and love Monet. Lasting inspirations from photos alive with the beautiful colors and design genius of a master- both on canvas and in the garden.
Why He Planted His Famous Garden
“Monet started to create his flower-filled garden when he moved to Giverny in 1883, refining it over 43 years. He originally planted flowers so that he could pick bunches to have something to paint indoors on rainy days.”-The Guardian
The Much Painted Water Garden
The water garden, and the famous blue-green Japanese style bridge are among the most famous scenes in the artist’s garden. He painted them numerous times and they are among the most loved of his scenes. The colors are always restful and dreamy.
There are many other colors that appear in his paintings of his gardens, of course, and Monet planted his garden specifically for certain harmonies and to provide inspiration for his art.
The Japanese Bridge Over His Famous Waterlily Pond
En Plein Air
means “in the open air”. Outdoor painting was favored by French Impressionist painters.
Book cover
Seasonal borders in one of the world’s famous gardens. This is a book to pore over in winter and create spring and summer plans for your own flower color combinations.
Dreams of Color Made Visible On Canvas
The dreamy quality of a painting
One of the reasons we find for Monet’s venerable popularity rests in the dreamy and restful feeling he gives his paintings, but with such inner movement so that the viewer is never bored. Much like the beautiful quality of dreams, both those of a daydream on a summer day or the dreamlike state of a drowsy evening.
The blurred effect coupled with the subject matter, and the harmonious colors create calm. Contrast that with some of his fellow Impressionists, like Cézanne or Renoir.
Through His Eyes
Failing Vision
“The Artist’s Garden at Argenteuil”
The Effects Of His Eyesight
Many famous artists suffered from eyesight problems, Monet’s were well-known. By analyzing the depictions of the scenes and the tints of the colors, modern scientists can diagnose some of the issues of his poor eyesight and how that affected the way he painted.
Livescience.com discusses the effect of his sight loss on his painting:
During his lifetime it was known he suffered from cataracts.
As cataracts develop details fade out and shapes blur, white yellows, greens become yellow-green and reds are perceived as oranges. Blues and purples become replaced by reds and yellows.
Monet, for whose work fine variations in color were a hallmark, often expressed his frustration to friends and family as his vision failed between 1912 and 1922.
“He wrote letters to friends, how colors were getting dull, and it was hard to tell them apart, and how he had to label tubes of paint,” Marmor said. “He was very vocal about how his failing eyesight was affecting him.”
Argenteuil
Claude Monet (Dusk in Venice) Art Poster Print – 24×36 Art Poster Print by Claude Monet, 36×24
An example of how the artists failing eye sight changed the tonal effects of his paintings.
Giverny
When the artist was at his height creatively and where his happiness fairly saturates his canvases.
Monet felt Venice was a city “too beautiful to be painted”
Dreamlike Color
His fuzzy view of the world gives his paintings the dreamlike quality and results in a calming melange of color for the viewer.
As for the the opinion of the researcher into the results of this sight loss:
“I think it does not say that the paintings are good or bad or answer to the question as to how much they were trying to change their style,” Marmor said. “But I think it points out very dramatically some physical limitations that they had, which both limited their ability to paint, to put paint on canvas directly, but also to interpret what they were putting on a canvas-they couldn’t really judge what they were seeing.”
Inspiring Other Artists
He can inspire you just as these artists were inspired
Monet was not the only one to paint his garden- his living artistry in creating a garden inspired other painters, as well.
If you are in love with Monet’s Garden, yet another source for inspiration and reflection on his plantings and paintings
‘Giverny Garden’ c.1890 Philip Leslie Hale – American Impressionist Painter – 1865 – 1931
Summer, Giverny’ 1910 Clark was an American Painter – 1876 – 1949
He was an artist who inspired his generation and those following it to look at nature a whole new way, paint in “plein air”, and, unwittingly perhaps, turn a handicap like poor eyesight into an artistic asset.
Morning on the Seine, Near Giverny, 1896
These Colors In Your Home
Monet’s Colors In Your Home
Taking interior decor colors from one of your favorite paintings is like the reverse of finding paintings to match the room. With many of the color picker apps available, this is a cinch to accomplish.
One of my favorite sites for creating a color board from favorite pictures is Colourlovers.com.
From creating some color boards, whether online or off, the design for a room’s color coordination is a step away. A very important component of your interiors is completed.
Waterlily Paintings
Water Lilies of the Orangerie as Giverny
Morning on the Seine near Giverny
I believe one of my favorites is “Morning On The Seine”, perhaps because of the way the picture is divided between the blues and greens in a way that almost looks like fractals or the way a kaleidoscope breaks colors.
The Boat at Giverny (Or) the Norwegians, the Three Daughters of Mme. Hoschede
Home Decor Color Schemes
The Palette
At the beginning of his career Monet used dark colors, but from 1860 on, Monet shunned dark colors and worked from a palette of pure and pale hues.
If you look carefully, what appears black is almost never really black. It might be purple or a mix of colors, but not ivory black.
He said of this:
“As for the colors I use, what’s so interesting about that ? I don’t think one could paint better or more brightly with another palette. The most important thing is to know how to use the colors. Their choice is a matter of habit. In short, I use white lead, cadmium yellow, vermilion, madder, cobalt blue, chrome green. That’s all.”
The Real Monet – Painting his famous waterlilies
Meadow in Giverny
Do you have a favorite Monet painting?
