Water Lilies (Nymphéas)
by Claude Monet, 1926
Artwork Details
Details
- Year
- 1926
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Size
- Various panels
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Claude Monet spent three decades, from the 1890s until his death in 1926, creating his Water Lilies series. The eight monumental panels at the Musée de l'Orangerie in Paris represent the culmination of this obsessive project. Each panel stands 2 meters tall, and together they span 91 meters across two oval rooms.
Monet donated these works to France as a symbol of peace the day after the Armistice of November 11, 1918. He worked closely with architect Camille Lefèvre to design the display space, which forms the shape of an infinity symbol. Natural skylights illuminate the paintings as Monet intended, with sunrise scenes facing east and sunset scenes facing west.
The installation covers 200 square meters of painted surface. André Masson called it the "Sistine Chapel of Impressionism" in 1952. Monet drew inspiration from his water garden at Giverny, where he cultivated water lilies specifically for his paintings.
Water Lilies Series by Claude Monet
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About Water Lilies (Nymphéas)
They're at the Musée de l'Orangerie in the Tuileries Gardens, Paris. Monet donated eight monumental panels to France in 1922, with the condition that they be displayed in a purpose-built space.
The eight panels span approximately 100 linear meters (328 feet) of canvas across two oval rooms. Each panel is about 2 meters (6.5 feet) tall. The largest individual canvas stretches over 17 meters. Monet worked on them for years in a specially built studio at Giverny.
Monet specified the oval shape to create an immersive, continuous experience, surrounding viewers with water, light, and reflections. He called it his 'decorative whole.' The curved walls eliminate corners, making the paintings flow seamlessly. The effect is meditative, almost like being inside the water garden itself.
Monet worked on them from about 1914 until his death in 1926. The panels were installed at the Orangerie in 1927, the year after he died. He repainted sections obsessively, sometimes destroying months of work. His cataracts affected his color perception, but he continued painting with fierce determination.
They're late Impressionism at its most ambitious. The sheer scale and immersive quality anticipate Color Field painting and installation art by decades. Clement Greenberg and other critics later cited these panels as a direct precursor to Abstract Expressionism.
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