Where can I see Woman with a Parasol?

It's at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Monet painted it in 1875. It shows his wife Camille and their son Jean on a breezy summer hillside.

What makes this painting special?

Monet captured a single, fleeting moment with extraordinary spontaneity. The wind whips Camille's veil and skirt. Clouds streak across the sky. The tall grass bends. Everything is in motion. Monet painted it quickly, outdoors, working directly from observation rather than studio preparation.

Camille Doncieux, Monet's first wife, holds the parasol. Their son Jean (about 8 years old) stands partly hidden in the grass. Camille died in 1879 at age 32. Monet later painted two similar compositions (1886) with a different model, but never with the same emotional charge.

How big is the painting?

It measures 100 cm × 81 cm (39.4 × 31.9 inches). The low viewpoint (looking up at Camille against the sky) gives her a monumental quality despite the casual subject. Broad, visible brushstrokes build the green grass and white clouds with energetic confidence.

It's a defining work of Impressionism. The emphasis on outdoor light, visible brushwork, everyday subject matter, and capturing a transient moment are all core Impressionist principles. Monet doesn't describe details. He describes how light and air feel at a specific instant.

Where to See Woman with a Parasol: National Gallery of Art

Woman with a Parasol

by Claude Monet, 1875

StyleImpressionism

MediumOil Canvas

Palette

Year: 1875
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 100 cm × 81 cm

Where to See It

National Gallery of Art

Washington, D.C., United States

Permanently housed

Museum Website Buy Tickets

The Artist

Claude Monet

1840–1926

French

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Claude Monet painted this Woman with a Parasol in 1875, capturing his wife Camille and their son Jean during a summer stroll near Argenteuil. The wind catches Camille's white dress and veil while she holds a green parasol above her head. Monet painted the scene outdoors in a single session of several hours.

The composition places the viewer below the figures, looking up against fluffy clouds and an azure sky. Seven-year-old Jean appears as a small figure in the background, barely visible through the waving meadow grass. Monet wanted to convey a casual family outing rather than a formal portrait.

The painting was one of 18 works Monet showed at the second Impressionist exhibition in 1876. John Singer Sargent saw it there and later created similar parasol scenes. Today it hangs at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., a gift from Paul Mellon in 1983.

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Woman with a Parasol