« Je passe ma vie à peindre ». Un parcours Claude Monet en galerie impressionniste

On the occasion of the centenary of his death, Claude Monet is honoured in the Impressionist gallery (rooms 29 to 35) through a dedicated journey.

Five paintings, recently studied or restored, reveal another facet of his art, less spontaneous than it appears.

Tracing the first decades of his career up to the turn of the century, his paintings show him fully engaged in his quest to paint outdoors and to render his "sensation".

They brilliantly convey the atmosphere of the banks of the Seine or the turbulent waves of the sea, the spring greenery or the harsh winter of near or distant landscapes, which his brush transfigures.

But beneath this dazzling ease lies a relentless quest: to paint a three-metre canvas in his garden; to compose a snow landscape; to evoke a life-size family meal, with or without guests, or even, very concretely, to decide whether or not to varnish his painting.

These are all questions Monet asked himself and which will be addressed in this display, developed with the collaboration of the Centre de Recherche et de Restauration des Musées de France and Bénédicte Trémolières, a restorer specialising in the artist, as well as with the participation of several restorers.

The ensemble allows us, thanks also to the presentation of a few letters, to meet the artist, at the heart of his work and his creative process.