Claude Monet

Born. 14.11.1840 Paris
Died. 05.12.1926 Giverny

French Artist, Impressionist

About the Artist

Claude Monet was born on 14 November 1840 in Paris. In 1845, his family moved to Le Havre in Normandy. Monet showed a good talent for painting at an early age and was supported by his mother. However, his father wanted him to go into the family business He went on to study at the Académie Suisse, where he was a classmate of Auguste Renoir. His early works of landscapes, seascapes, and portraits were not appreciated. He was influenced by Eugène Boudin and followed his style of plein air painting, (painted with sketchy, irregular marks using bright colours on light-tinted grounds).

His early work up to the mid-1860s were realistic pictures, and a few were chosen to be exhibited at the Paris Salon. He began to paint in his impressionist style at the end of the 1860s. In the 1870s Monet took part in several Impressionist exhibitions alongside other famous painters at the time such as Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Edger Degas

In the 1890s, Monet’s was suffering financially and it was during this period that Monet developed the concept of the series, painting using various light moods. He often spent his time painting in his landscaped garden which included a large lily pond. His first series exhibited was of haystacks, painted from different points of view and at different times of the day.

In 1895, he exhibited 20 paintings of Rouen Cathedral, showcasing the façade in different conditions of light, weather and atmosphere.[ Between 1883 and 1908, Monet travelled to the Mediterranean and London where he painted landmarks, landscapes, and seascapes.

As he got older, his eyesight started to fail him and his perception of colour suffered; his broad strokes were broader and his paintings were increasingly darker. He eventually underwent cataract surgery in 1923. Being able to see the real colours, he began to destroy canvases of his earlier works that  he had produced before his operation. By 1925, his visual impairment was improved and he began to retouch some of his earlier works.

Monet died of lung cancer on 5 December 1926 at the age of 86 and is buried in the Giverny church cemetery.