Samantha Pitkin

Claude Monet (born Oscar-Claude Monet) was an impressionism painter born in

November 14, 1840 to Claude-Adolphe and Louise-Justine Aubre Monet. He was the second
son of two. His older brother was Leon Monet. Originally his father wanted him to join the
family grocery store business but Claude wanted to be an artist. He was baptized into the parish
church as his mother and father were second generation Parisians but he later became an atheist.
His mother died when he was 16 and he went on to live with his aunt.
Monet attended Le Havre secondary school of the arts in his early years. In 1859, Monet
moved to Paris to pursue an art career. When he moved to Paris, he noticed that the painters were
all learning from the masters and copying what they were doing. Instead of following the path of
everyone else, he decided to sit outside or near a window and draw what he saw. Along the way
he learned from Jacques-Francois Ochard and Eugne Boudin. Eugne Boudin was the one who
taught him how to oil paint and there he began to showcase scenery through oil painting.
Although he ended up doing oil paintings for most of his career, he started out doing charcoal
caricatures locally and became well known for them.
From 1861 to 1862 Monet served in the military. While there, he developed typhoid
fever. His aunt agreed to help get him out if he agreed to take an art class at an art school. He
struggled financially many years throughout his life and sought help through other people but
wasnt as successful as he would have liked. He became so distressed that in 1868 he attempted
to suicide by trying to drown himself in the Seine River. He also tore up some paintings when he
got frustrated. Some of these paintings were recovered as much as possible by his friends and
family. He went through various times of depression and self-doubt despite his talent.
Although he eventually became an acclaimed artist, his work didnt always come without
critique. He was often critiqued for his lack of distinct figures because classical painting was the
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style that most used at the time. In 1860 he entered the annual Salons and although he had some
works of art accepted, his painting Women in the Garden was not accepted.
Impressionism is an art movement that he as well as other artist started. Impressionism is
defined as a literary or artistic style that seeks to capture a feeling or experience rather than to
achieve accurate depiction (google definition). His goal was to make you feel emotion when
looking at his paintings which he was very excellent at doing. Impression, Sunrise was one of the
early pieces of the impression movement. It was often used to define the group of impressionist
artists. Impressionism was meant to be a derogatory term but it was a fitting one so it stuck. This
was during a time when artists painted exactly what the scene looked like rather than aiming
towards expressing a certain emotion through the painting of the scene; this is where Monet and
other impressionist artists differed from classical artists.
Throughout his life, Monet was married to Camille and Alice. He was married to Camille
from 1870 until she died in 1879 of tuberculosis. While they were married, Monet and Camille
had two sons, Jean in 1867 and Michel in 1878. Camille became sick during her pregnancy with
Michel and died not long after he was born. Monet would often paint portraits of his wife and
kids. Two of the paintings include Jean in a baby basket and a separate one of Camille on her
death bed. As Camilles health was deteriorating, they went to live with Alice and Ernest. Alice
and Monet became romantically involved some time after Camilles death and eventually
married in 1892 after Ernest (Alices previous husband) had died. Alice had helped Monet raise
his two sons and she had six children of her own from her previous husband.
It was in Giverny that Monet found inspiration for many of his pieces to come. There he
painted the landscape that he helped create including the Japanese footbridge and Water lilies.
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These two elements created series of artwork that he is famous for today. In 1918, Monet
donated 12 of his water lily paintings to the nation of France to celebrate the Armistice.
Monet painted many series of the same scenes because he was fascinated with the
different lightings that a single scene could produce. He travelled to Italy and rented a room
across the Rouen Cathedral. This produced much of his structural paintings that were painted at
different times of day and in different weather conditions which produced many color variations
of the same buildings.
Monets view on color was unique. He was quoted, As for the colors I use, whats so
interesting about that? I dont 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 sue white lead, cadmium yellow, vermilion, madder, cobalt blue, and chrome green.
Thats all. He, as well as other impressionists, rarely used blacks. Instead, they would use a
combination of blues, greens, and reds. Even in the shadows of his paintings he opted out of
using black. Because Monet was so against using black, George Clemenceau would not allow
Monets coffin to be covered in black and exclaimed, No! No black for Monet! and replaced
the black sheet with a floral material.
Later in life Monet developed cataracts in his eyes. Cataracts cause the lens of the eye to
become denser and yellowish. Because of this, Claude had a hard time seeing. He would write
letters to his friends and family describing how hard it was. Monet wrote to one of his friends,
To think I was getting on so well, more absorbed than Ive ever been and expecting to achieve
something, but I was forced to change my tune and give up a lot of promising beginnings and
abandon the rest; and on top of that, my poor eyesight makes me see everything in a complete
fog. Its very beautiful all the same and its this which Id love to have been able to convey. All
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in all, I am very unhappy. August 11, 1922, Giverny. He painted what he saw rather than what
he knew so his paintings became blurrier and blurrier as well as overwhelmed with yellows, reds,
and oranges and less blues, purples, and greens.
The French ophthalmologist Charles Coutela, M.D, attempted to help Claude by giving
him eye drops to help his cataracts. The eye drops produced good results in the beginning but
didnt last very long and therefore surgery was suggested. In 1923 he underwent surgery on one
of his eyes in attempt to fix the cataract. It didnt work as well as he had hoped and he wrote a
letter to Doctor Coutela expressing his feelings: I might have finished the Decorations which I
have to deliver in April and Im certain now that I wont be able to finish them as Id have liked.
Thats the greatest blow I could have had and it makes me sorry that I ever decided to go ahead
with that fatal operation. Excuse me for being so frank and allow me to say that I think its
criminal to have placed me in such a predicament. from letter to Doctor Charles Coutela, June
22, 1923, Giverny. Instead of seeing yellows, reds, and oranges, he saw mostly blues and greens
and it is believed that he was able to see some ultraviolet colors that most people cannot
perceive. Because of this, some of his paintings would be yellow/ red and some would be blue/
green, depending on what eye he was seeing through. He decided not to have surgery on the
other eye because he didnt see this as an improvement. He was given glasses after his surgery
but they still werent perfect. He said that he could never adjust to the first pair he was given
even though the doctor said he should have near perfect vision with them. He was somewhat
happier with the second pair. He also had some problems with glare so he often wore a wide
brimmed hat and stopped painting in the middle of the day.
Monet died on December 5, 1926 of lung cancer. He didnt want his funeral to be a big
occasion and therefore only about 50 people attended the ceremony. His legacy continues on
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today and he will be known for paving the way for artists following him to break away from the
classical painting that preceded him. His house and garden have been preserved as well as a
museum dedicated to him which both serve as tourist attractions in Giverny.
Some of Monets notable works of art included: London, Parliament: sun through the fog
which sold for $20.1 million, Falaises prs de Dieppe (Cliffs near Dieppe) which has been stolen
twice and is currently still missing, Le Pont du chemin de fer Argenteuil that sold for $41.4
million, and Le bassin aux nymphas that sold for about $71 million in 2008 which is the record
for Monets art.
My thoughts: I chose Claude Monet because I learned about him through another class.
We learned about his ability to see ultraviolet that most of us cannot see as a result of his surgery
and that made me intrigued enough to do a report on him. I love his works of art. I think its
really interesting that he drew many of the same scenes multiple times and they were all
different. It was interesting to see the contrast of his earlier paintings before he had problems
with his eyes to after he had problems with his eyes as well as after the surgery that left him to
paint more blues and greens when looking out one eye. I enjoy how he painted what he saw
rather than what he remembered it looking like; it really made the different pieces stand out as
well as showed the viewer what it was like to see through an eye with a cataract.
Claudes paintings drew you in. They captured your emotions with each beautiful scene.
Even though many of his paintings were of the same scene they were very diverse. Each painting
told a new story and captured a new emotion. Before he developed his cataract, the colors he
painted with were so vibrant and so wonderfully put together. His composition made your eyes
wander throughout the painting wanting to see more. Each of his paintings appears to have been
well thought out. Even though not all of his figures are distinct, they are still beautiful. He was
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able to paint as he saw the world but also keep to his own personal style which was painting
emotions and not everything 100% correct.
It was interesting to see some of Claudes life through his paintings. You get a look at
what he looked like during a few different times in his life as well as a glimpse of his kids and
nice paintings of his first wife Camille. Although he preferred to paint scenery, it was nice to see
some paintings of people as well as a few structures in the mix.
I particularly enjoyed his painting The Artists Family in the Garden. I enjoyed this
piece for many reasons. My eye was originally drawn to this one because of the vibrant colors;
this must have been before he developed a cataract in his eyes. The flower bush and the light
coming through the trees really stand out and make an impact on the viewer. There is amazing
contrast in this painting to make the lights pop out. Its also nice to see one of his many
depictions of his family.
I really enjoyed looking at this artist more closely. It was interesting to see why he had
many paintings that were blurry and discolored. Many people just think he wanted to paint the
scene that way but it was interesting to research and find out the truth. It would definitely be
difficult to continue painting when your eyes arent good anymore but he did it anyway and that
is definitely honorable.