Garden of Giverny and Monet

Explore the Garden of French Impressionist

Founder of the French Impressionist paintings, Claude Monet was the most prolific practitioner of the philosophy of expressing one’s perceptions before nature. As a child, he was known by locals for his charcoal caricatures, Monet went on to spearhead an artistic movement, which derived its name from his painting, Impression: Sunrise. 

Monet had noticed the village of Giverny, near Vernon and some 50 miles from Paris, while looking out of a train window, and the impression had stayed with him. It was only in 1890 that he had enough money to buy and move into a large house in Giverny with his family. The house had a barn which doubled as a studio, an orchard and a small garden. Little did one know that this garden would inspire a series of paintings which the world of art would cherish forever. And Monet lived in this house for 43 years. 

Monet painted the Sunrise on the Normandy coast in Havre, the cathedral series in Rouen and the garden, the bridge, and the water-lilies at Giverny. His series paintings saw a subject in varying light and weather conditions. Initially inspired by the countryside, Monet gradually limited himself to his garden. He was exceptionally fond of painting controlled nature and he found his muse in his garden.
 
Monet personally supervised this garden, as it evolved from humble beginnings to being tended by seven gardeners. Thousands of saplings were planted every year and the brightly hued flowers spilled over the beds, giving the garden a stunning radiance. He diverted a river to form a pond and the water-lilies in this pond have been immortalized in his painting by the same name. The bamboos and the willows bordered the pond and we still see the branches of the willows touching the water surface. 
 
A visit to Monet’s garden has a refreshing aura about it, which touches art-lovers and those not so steeped in art, with equal fervor. You get to see the water-lilies dancing in the breeze and droplets of water rolling on the lily-pads. You walk across the arched green Japanese bridge, draped in wisteria, which Monet so lovingly depicted in his works. You see little green boat being rocked by the ripples in the pond. 

Monet’s house still stands the way it always did in the past, untouched and pristine in its presence. A tour of the house will give you the feel which comes across in his paintings. Home to Monet, and frequented by Renoir, Matisse and Cezanne, the house is replete with the owner’s collection of Japanese prints. The kitchen with blue tiles on its wall and an array of copper pots lining the wall still has the magic of the countryside. 
 
Open to tourists all year round, Giverny stands as a monument in honor of Claude Monet. You can take a day trip or just stop by this place known for its artistic splendor. The village had two streets when Monet lived there, is still a quaint little place with its country church and half-timbered houses. The best time to regale in its beauty will be anytime between spring and fall. You can take a look at the Museum of American Art nearby and be welcomed by the special exhibit titled “The Garden of Monet at Giverny: The Invention of the Landscape.” Also on display are works by Mary Cassatt and Winslow Homer. 
When you see Monet’s “Water-lilies”, you see a canvas brightened by the vibrant reds and pinks against the soft greens of the lily-pads and the pale blues of the reflected sky. As his eyesight failed due to debilitating cataract, the paintings became larger and more abstract. The same water lilies got fuzzier as the series aged along with the painter.

Stopping at Giverny will be like visiting Monet’s world as he saw it and wanted the world to see. A walk in his garden, resplendent in its beauty and rare foliage, would be a surreal experience, like walking into one of his paintings.

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