Claude 1840-1926 Monet

MONET, CLAUDE (1840-1926), French painter, was born in Paris on Nov. 14, 1840. He was one of the chief founders of the Impressionist school. At Havre he became acquainted with Boudin, under whose guidance he learned to love and to under stand nature. At the age of twenty he became a soldier, and spent two years of his military service with the regiment of the Chasseurs d'Afrique in the desert. Falling ill with fever, he was sent home, and entered the studio of Gleyre, who tried in vain to keep him to academic art. Monet left his studio, where he had become acquainted with Sisley and Renoir. At that time he also knew Manet, and in 1869 he joined the group of Cezanne, Degas, Duranty, Sisley, and became a plein air painter. During the war of 1870 he withdrew to England. and on his return was intro duced by Daubigny to a dealer, M. Durand-Ruel, in whose gal leries almost all his works have been exhibited. In 1872 he exhibited views of Argenteuil, near Paris; in 1874 a series entitled "Cathedrals," showing the cathedral of Rouen under different lights. Some time later he painted views of Vetheuil (1875)

Pourville and cliffs of Etretat (1881), of Bordighera (1886), of the Creuse (1889), Le Meules (1891) and some further views of cathedrals (1894). In December 1900 he exhibited some pic tures called "Le Bassin aux Nympheas," and was engaged at the beginning of 1901 in painting views of London.

In

his later years he worked in the neighbourhood of Giverny, where he lived, and devoted himself to the study of motifications in the aspect of a limited number of subjects caused by changes of light and the seasons. On the motive of the "Bassin aux Nympheas" he produced a series of twelve large compositions. An other series painted in 1913 is the "Arceaux Fleurs" representing a corner of his garden. In 1918 he produced similar studies under the title "Saule Pleureur." He died at Giverny on Dec. 5, 1926.

See Gustave Geffroy, Claude Monet (1922) ; and IMPRESSIONISM.