A key piece in the history of art and impressionism holds many mysteries
The impressionism was the first artistic movement of history that was truly modern because of its rejection of the canons of representation and pictorial styles inherited as well as the introduction of innovative techniques such as behavior and lifestyle of the artist, important aspects they became inseparable from his artistic practices .
Claude Monet , a pioneer of this movement, introduced the fascination with light and its flexible qualities, unusual visual angles as the main ideas expressed through outdoor landscape painting by himself and other advocates. His revolutionary style reached its climax point in the early 1970s, with the iconic picture: Rising Sun . However, Los Nenúfares is another work of his that defined him as an artist.
Monet didn't paint his garden, he turned his garden into a work of art
In 1883, Monet and his large family rented a large property located between the towns of Vernon and Gasny in Giverny that included a double barn (which he ended up using as a painting studio), orchards, and a small garden. In the late 1890s, Monet was able to purchase the property, including its surrounding gardens with a pond. Monet turned this pond into a water lily garden . With the help of a small group of gardeners, the artist diverted a river, planted imported water lilies , along with other plants such as weeping willows, bamboos, and exotic flowers. Ultimately, the creation of this dreamlike landscape, of fascinating beauty, was related to Monet's wishto organize your property like a large painting .
Neighbors loved the water lilies
Monet had a Japanese wooden arch bridge built in a narrow part of the water garden, and had to control the flow of the Ru River to raise the temperature of the water and help the water lilies imported from Giverny, Egypt and South America to flourish. . This sparked an outcry from the Giverny residents as they used the river for washing and believed that Monet's garden would pollute their water. The council demanded that he uproot the plants, but (thankfully) Monet ignored him.
The Water Lilies are not just a painting
Monet painted the gardens around the house and then turned his attention to the water gardens, painting them from 1897 until his death in 1926. In all, he produced more than 250 oil paintings of his water lily ponds and his Japanese bridge, executed in different times of the day and give yourself different perspectives.
The Water Lily series
The first series of Water Lilies consisting of twenty-five canvases were shown in 1900 at the Galerie Durand-Ruel in Paris. 9 years later, Monet finished the second series of 48 canvases. To permanently house 8 murals of water lilies during the 1920s, the French state built two oval rooms in the Musée de l'Orangerie, but the exhibition opened in 1927, just a few months after Monet's death .
An artistic study of water and feelings
In the later images of the Water Lilies , Impressionism is combined with Expressionism to almost the same extent, as Monet's attempt to capture natural light and ever-changing color ends up dissolving all spatial cues. While mixing the water and the sky, Monet created a peaceful meditation within an environment of flowers and water. Today, these monumental works of French painting represent not only what was in front of Monet's eyes , but also what he was feeling.
Badly received by critics
Critics called these paintings messy and suggested that the works had to do with Monet's blurred and decaying vision. Critics scoffed at Monet's color palette and his argument that his depiction of flora, water, and light was an artistic choice, prompting initial disdain for the now-revered series. Years later, Monet completely lost the sight in one eye.
Monet destroyed several paintings in this series
Considering how cruel his critics were, it's no wonder that in his later years Monet became very selective about which paintings he would sign and attempt to sell. In 1908, Monet destroyed 15 of his water lilies before they were displayed at the Durand-Ruel gallery in Paris. The painter was not at all satisfied with the result of these works, so he believed that it was better to destroy them than to display them.
A monument to peace
In 1918 the painter celebrated the end of the First World War by painting huge paintings of his contemplative Water Lilies , in honor of peace.
An enveloping experience and promote meditation
That same year Monet completed a series of 12 paintings that he intended to display in a specially designed oval room where viewers could enter and receive the illusion of an endless whole, of water without a horizon. As mentioned above, the French government authorized the construction of a couple of oval-shaped rooms at the Musée de l'Orangerie in Paris, as the permanent home to 8 huge wall paintings of Monet's Water Lilies . Other panels are on display at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMa) in New York.
The fire that burned the paintings
In 1958, a terrible fire broke out at MoMA which burned 2 works of Monet's Water Lilies that they had just acquired. The loss devastated art lovers, who sent letters of condolence to the museum. In 1959, the MoMa had another chance to own part of the series when it acquired a huge triptych of Water Lilies .
Where they can be found
The paintings can be found in museums around the world, including the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Saint Louis Museum of Art, the Carnegie Museum of Art, the National Museum of Wales, the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Nantes, among others.