Antibes in the Morning

Claude Monet captured Antibes in early morning light during his 1888 stay on the French Riviera. The town and its medieval fortifications shimmer across calm waters, rendered in soft pinks and pale blues. Pine trees frame the left edge of the composition, a motif that recurs throughout his Mediterranean series.

Monet wrote to Alice Hoschede that the morning light at Antibes was particularly challenging. The colors changed rapidly as the sun rose, forcing him to work quickly or return the next day to the same spot. This serialized approach would become central to his later Haystacks and Rouen Cathedral series.

The canvas now belongs to the Courtauld Gallery in London. Camille Pissarro criticized the Antibes paintings as "showy" when they exhibited in Paris, feeling Monet had sacrificed depth for decorative appeal. Modern viewers often consider them among his most beautiful works.