UNIT 3, OUTCOME 3

ARTISTS AND STUDIO PRACTICES

Vik Muniz

Oscar-Claude Monet
OSCAR-CLAUDE MONET
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGoGshNbFew
Biography
Oscar-Claude Monet was born in
France in 1840, and died in
France in 1926.
He was a famous French painter
whose work gave a name to the
art movement Impressionism.
Impressionism was associated
with capturing light and natural
forms.
He helped open the door for
abstraction in art by rejecting the
conventions of creating realistic
forms in his works.
Characteristics of Impressionist Painting

Visible brushstrokes

Light colours

Emphasis on light and the changing qualities of it

Ordinary subject matter

Unusual visual angles

Open compositions
Examples of Oscar-Claude Monets Artwork

Hemerocallis (Daylilies), Oil on Canvas, 1914 - 1917 Waterlilies and Agapanthus, Oil on Canvas, 1914 - 1917
 Focused Example #1
Woman With A Parasol-

Madame Monet and Her Son

Oil on Canvas Painting

1875

100 x 81 cm

Woman With A Parasol Madame Monet And Her Son, Oil on Canvas, 1875, 100 x 81cm
 Subject Matter
Woman With a Parasol-Madame
Monet and Her Son depicts Monets
wife Camille. In the artwork, Camille
is seen as if from below and she is
dressed in a large, white dress, with
a veiled hat, carrying a parasol. She
is standing on a hill of green,
silhouetted against a glittering blue,
whirling sky, and it appears as if she
is catching a glimpse of someone
looking at her. In the background is
Monets son, who is standing in a
field.
Within the artwork, Monet captures
a moment on a stroll on a windy
summer's day.

Woman With A Parasol Madame Monet And Her Son, Oil on Canvas, 1875, 100 x 81cm
 Influences
Claude Monet was primarily inspired by
nature, and the effects of light on
landscapes. This is shown in Woman With
A Parasol- Madame Monet And Her Son,
as bright sunlight shines from behind
Camille to whiten the top of her parasol and
the flowing cloth at her back.

Throughout his life, Monets paintings

focused on outdoor scenes, and the area
around his home in Giverny was a
particularly strong source of inspiration.

In Woman With A Parasol Madame

Monet And Her Son, Claude Monet was
inspired by ordinary people in casual
outdoor situations- in this case, the garden
surrounding Monets second home in
Argenteuil. This type of painting was
influenced by artist Johan Barthold
Johnkind, who was Monets teacher. This is
shown within the painting in Camilles
spontaneous and natural pose, as she
holds her parasol and turns in the wind.

Woman With A Parasol Madame Monet And Her Son, Oil on Canvas, 1875, 100 x 81cm
 Cultural/Historical Contexts
Woman With a Parasol-Madame Monet
and Her Son was created in 1875, during
the Impressionism art movement.

Impressionist artists- such as Monet

rejected the official, government-
sanctioned exhibitions of fine finished,
detailed artworks. The Impressionists
aimed to capture the fleeting, sensory
effect of a scene - the impression objects
made on the eye in a brief instant. This
artistic influence is depicted in Woman With
A Parasol Madame Monet And Her Son,
as Camille holds her parasol and turns
spontaneously in the wind.

The 19th Century also saw advancements

in packaging of oil paint and the invention
of collapsible tubes. This allowed Monet to
work outdoors (en plein air), capturing
fleeting moments in rapid, broken
brushstrokes- such as those in Woman
With A Parasol Madame Monet And Her
Son.

Woman With A Parasol Madame Monet And Her Son, Oil on Canvas, 1875, 100 x 81cm
 Communication of Ideas & Meanings
In Woman With A Parasol Madame
Monet And Her Son, Monet communicates
the feeling of a casual family outing rather
than a formal portrait. This is shown
through pose and placement to suggest
that his wife- Camille and son- Jeon were
interrupted during their stroll.
In this painting, Monet incorporated an
unusually low viewpoint, so the artist is
looking up at his subject. This
communicates Camille's importance as she
fills the upper parts of the canvas.
Within this artwork, Monet also
communicates the main ideal associated
with Impressionism- depicting ordinary
people in casual outdoor situations. This is
shown in the spontaneity of Camille's
stance- emphasising a moment on a stroll
during a windy summer's day. It is also
shown through Jeon- who appears in the
distance, rather than standing next to his
mother- as he would if it were a typical
family portrait.

Woman With A Parasol Madame Monet And Her Son, Oil on Canvas, 1875, 100 x 81cm
 Materials, Techniques & Processes
Woman with a Parasol - Madame Monet And Her Son
was painted using oil paint on canvas. The artwork
was painted outdoors (En plein air), most likely in a
single session of several hours' duration.
To create this artwork, Monet sketched out the initial
composition of Camille and Jeon using either charcoal
or paint.
The main fields of colour were then blocked-in, which
were applied with dry and undiluted paint.
Monet then applied paint using strong colours of blue,
green and yellow- which he did not blend. He painted
them onto the canvas thickly, using short
brush strokes.
Finally, highlights were delicately applied to the figures
of Camille and Jeon using a thin brush, and the
painting was signed and dated in the bottom right-
hand side of the canvas using dark blue oil paint- to
indicate its completion.
At the time of this artwork, paintings were usually
sealed using varnish. However, Monet abandoned
varnish in the late 1800s due to its discolouring
effects.

Woman With A Parasol Madame Monet And Her Son, Oil on Canvas, 1875, 100 x 81cm
 Aesthetic Qualities
Within Woman With A Parasol
Madame Monet And Her Son,
Monet conveyed the
atmosphere of a casual family
outing using pose and
placement. The spontaneity and
natural mood is captured
through animated brushstrokes
of vibrant colours and light tones
from behind Camille, to
emphasise the movement of her
turning in the wind.
The Impressionist style is
conveyed in the painting through
the use of an unusual visual
angle as Camille is viewed from
below. This creates emphasis
and suggests her importance.
Woman With A Parasol Madame Monet And Her Son, Oil on Canvas, 1875, 100 x 81cm
Focused Example #2

Weeping Willow

Oil on Canvas Painting

1918 1919

99.7 x 120 cm

Weeping Willow, Oil on Canvas, 1918 1919, 99.7 x 120 cm

Subject Matter
The subject matter of Monets
painting is a Weeping Willow tree,
which fills the entire composition of
his artwork.
The trunk of the weeping willow tree
is placed slightly left of center in the
painting, and the cascading
branches droop to create a falling
canopy.
Within the composition there are a
range of light and dark tones.
Subdued colours are placed on the
Weeping Willow, Oil on Canvas, 1918 1919, 99.7 x 120 cm left-hand side of the painting, while
bright colours are shown on the
right.
Influences
Monets painting Weeping Willow was
influenced by World War I and the
tragedy associated with it. While
Monet was opposed to war, the first
World War came close to his doorstep
and altered his position- especially as
his sons were enlisted.
In his painting, Monet was influenced
by the mournful symbolism of the
weeping willow and tried to show his
respect to the common soldier
through his artworks. This is shown in
the full length of the willow trunk,
stretched and vulnerable.
Within Weeping Willow, reddish tones
are also evident- which is a common
Weeping Willow, Oil on Canvas, 1918 1919, 99.7 x 120 cm symptom of cataract suffers. Monet
suffered from cataracts, and it is
believed that the Weeping Willow
series is evident of these changes his
health.
Cultural/Historical Contexts
Weeping Willow was created in 1918,
during World War I.
During this time, Monet ordered
twelve small canvases, and created a
series of weeping willow paintings.
His Impressionist method of
emphasising colour, form and light
was usually sensory, and rarely
emotional.
In the Weeping Willow series
however, Monets paintings
incorporate uncontrolled brushstrokes
and dark tones. This suggests that the
events witnessed by Monet- listening
to artillery fire from nearby areas and
injured soldiers being evacuated
Weeping Willow, Oil on Canvas, 1918 1919, 99.7 x 120 cm along the road at the end of his
garden influenced the mournful
subject matter, and the brushstrokes
of his Weeping Willow paintings.
Communication of Ideas & Meanings
In Weeping Willow, Monet paints with
World War I in mind reflecting on the wars
effect on his own life and the world. The
uncontrolled brushstrokes and contrast
between dark and light tones
communicates his disturbed feelings of
war.
The Weeping Willow series was created in
homage to the fallen and injured soldiers.
This idea is communicated through the
mournful symbolism of weeping willow
trees and the full length of the willow trunk,
stretched and vulnerable.
Monet signed the Weeping Willow painting
on Armistice Day (the day a truce was
Weeping Willow, Oil on Canvas, 1918 1919, 99.7 x 120 cm
signed between opposing countries of war).
This suggests that he was marking his
stance and contribution to the peace effort
during the time.
Materials, Techniques & Processes
Weeping Willow, Oil on Canvas, 1918 1919, 99.7 x 120 cm
Weeping Willow was painted using oil paint on
canvas. This artwork was among the very few easel-
scale paintings that Monet made, when he claimed his
failing eyesight was best suited for working in larger
formats.
To create this artwork, Monet sketched out the initial
composition of the weeping willow, using oil paint.
Monet then applied many layers of paint, which he did
not blend. He painted them onto the canvas thickly,
using short and uncontrolled brush strokes, and
creating a contrast between the dark pigments on the
left-hand side of the canvas, and the bright colours on
the right-hand side.
To indicate the completion of the artwork, the painting
was signed and dated in the bottom left-hand side of
the canvas using dark red oil paint.
At the time of this artwork, paintings were usually
sealed using varnish. However, Monet abandoned
varnish in the late 1800s due to its discolouring
effects.
Aesthetic Qualities
Within Weeping Willow, Monet
conveyed a grieving mood
associated with the events of World
War I.
Throughout the painting, Monet
incorporates shadowy colours of
blues, greens and reds, and
cascading forms in the trunk of the
tree, as if to express the mournful
atmosphere during the period.
On the left-hand side of the
painting, Monet incorporates dark
pigments, while the right-hand side
contains brighter colours of yellows
Weeping Willow, Oil on Canvas, 1918 1919, 99.7 x 120 cm
and reds. This contrast conveys a
sense of disturbed emotions within
the painting.