When Gerlinde, Karen, and I went to Paris in March, we decided to take a daytrip to Claude Monet's most fabulous creation - his home an garden in Giverny. It was a perfect blue-sky Spring day with a touch of coolness in the air with the plants just beginning to send out shoots, leaves, and flowers. The site had only been opened for 2 days so far this season so there were very few visitors. We had the place almost to ourselves - well, relatively speaking! That famous Japanese bridge was only very rarely free of people taking selfies or having others photograph them (I'm definitely included in that number!) |
| I love the way the trim all around the room, and even on the furniture is painted a darker color. I don't know that I would be so bold! (I also don't have such ornate, beautiful trim!) |
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| The yellow dining room. Everything was yellow other than the floor! There were also different shades of yellow here, like in the blue room, but they were less noticeable here. This felt very much like a room for a large family. I could almost hear their voices echoing off the walls. (He had 2 children, his second wife brought 6 into the marriage - BIG family!) |
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| The kitchen! Blue tiles. Huge stove. Large room. I covet his kitchen! |
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| I also want these pots, shiny copper bottoms all lined up in size order. So beautiful!! |
We toured Monet's fabulous, huge studio where he painted the gigantic water lily series which he donated to the French state and which can be found installed at l'Orangerie. Then we went to his house - what a fabulous home! It was nothing short of inspiring to see how he chose to decorate it - very bright and colorful rooms full of light and art. He collected Japanese prints and had them hung in many of the rooms on all the walls. Of course, he also hung his own works, as well as those of his friends. The ones hung there now are copies, but it gives the feel for how it would have looked with his works in progress and finished works all over the house.
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| Gerlinde and I are standing by his bedroom window by his desk. There is a simliar window by his bed. He awoke to this view each day he was home and died in this room, with this view just outside. That sounds pretty close to heaven already. |
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| Karen was nice enough to take a picture of me pretending to paint at Monet's easel. That was heady stuff! I WISH!! |
The views from the rooms were stunning! They all looked out onto his gardens which were his other creations. I'd read about his gardens and had looked at pictures in books, but I never got a sense of how they were laid out. It was wonderful seeing them!
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| A boat just like this shows up in many of Monet's paintings. It was so easy to imagine him here painting. Glorious! |
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| This small creek wound grace- fully beside the larger pond. |
To try to give you a sense of it: you can see his house at the top of this post. Behind the house is the lane that goes through the village. I didn't notice any windows at all looking onto the lane. All the windows are directed towards the gardens. The formal, symmetrical gardens with many trellises for hanging roses, wysteria, etc. are directly in front of the house. They extend maybe 50 yards.
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| Part of the garden in front of his house |
Then there is a high wall. We were directed to the right where there is a tunnel that goes under the road and emerges into the second garden, a much less formal one, where the pond is. There the plants appear less formally planted, but I have a feeling that they are every bit as carefully placed. Weeping willows, wysteria hanging from the famous bridge, azaleas, rhododendrons, bushes, shrubs, tulips and other seasonal blooming flowers, and, of course, the water lilies (which weren't yet in bloom when we were there). There is a path all the way around the pond along with several secondary paths which branch off from and lead back to the primary path. The views from each aspect were stunning and made me want to stay for months painting, drawing, gazing, absorbing.
I am aware that the house and gardens have both been refurbished since Monet's time, and I believe the pond has even been enlarged, so they may not be completely faithful to his times, but I think there were great efforts made to be true. I'm so glad we went! It was a wonderful day with perfect weather! |
| Portender of what's to come! |
After we had gone all the way around the pond, we decided to rest for a moment on one of the benches set there for just that purpose. I couldn't help myself - I got out my watercolors and journal and began to paint! The scene was too gorgeous to NOT at least try to paint. Gerlinde did the same. Karen served as cheerleader and photographer for our process. For the next hour or more, we sat in the perfect sunshine and drew arguably the most famous artist's garden in the world. As I worked, I felt very good about my art, enjoyed what I was doing, liked my results. When I was finished, I felt chagrinned - it hadn't turned out as well as I wanted it to. I made excuses - I'm not good at plein air, watercolor isn't my medium - I can't do it very well, I needed more time. I could have done it better in pastels, especially from a photo. Any and all of that may be true, but, really, it just doesn't matter. I had a wonderful time working on the piece. It was very fun when people came by and commented. It filled my heart with joy to create in Monet's garden. Period. Full stop. The results just aren't that important. (Though, honestly, I do wish they were better!)
When I got home from Paris, I found out from my brother that he and my mother had been to Giverny together quite some years ago. They actually sat in the exact same place and also painted! When I visited my mother last week, she showed me the painting she did there. THAT was what I'd wanted mine to look like! Mom is one of the best watercolorists I know. It was great seeing her version of what I'd tried so hard to capture! Maybe one day she and I will go back there and she'll show me how to do watercolor like a pro like she does!
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| #87 My version of the famous Japanese bridge, 3/2019 |
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| and my mother's beautiful painting from 2004. Watercolor by Emma Lou Marchant Martin. |
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