The River Scene Contact Information Claude Monet

Previous page

MISCELLANEOUS

Next page

Let us together continue exploring the secrets of our paintings

We have learnt how careful Monet was with details, and how important they have shown to be.

We noticed that the greatest importance is attached to the characteristic details giving the figures their feature – their identity. This was a gift that Monet improved already in school. He recalled that he filled his school exercise books with: “…the faces or profiles of my teachers in the most irreverent manner.”

Monet constructed a dramatic opposition between two modes of representation: caricature and plein-air painting”. (Virginia Spate, ‘Monet – Life and work’, NY 1992).

Suzanne - the model

Suzanne acted as a model in situations where Monet earlier painted his first wife Camille, (dies in 1879). They were as like as two cherries. However, we recently found something characteristic for Suzanne, something of her own, ‘The Curl’, do you remember?

We believe that this is an interesting clue, and we simply have to follow this track!

Let us have a look at this Photo of Suzanne, (from a photo of the Monet family in the garden at Giverny), there it is again at her fore-head: ‘The Curl!’ Perhaps it is just a coincidence?

 

Let us proceed...


En Norvègienne


Blanche at her easel and Suzanne reading

The next close-up is from the painting: ‘En Norvègienne’, 1887,Musée d’Orsay, 98x131, (W 1151). Suzanne is sitting in the boat between her sisters. The curl is there - and certainly not by mere chance! Another close-up, now from ‘Blanche at her easel and Suzanne reading’, (W1131). The curl is looking out under her hat – and the hair is falling down at her back! Just like in our ‘River Scene’.

When you look at the painting with Suzanne and Blanche - do look at the colour of the trunks and compare with the chair and the trunks in the ‘Garden scene’! Interesting is also to remember that Camille was painted by Monet, reading in the grass like this, in 1872, ( The Reader, W 205).

 


Suzanne with Sunflowers


On the Boat

If we return to ‘Suzanne with Sunflowers’, we do find the same curl very clearly – though, unfortunately, it can be hard to se here, in our bad reproduction. In the painting ‘On the Boat’, (W1152), Suzanne is sitting in the stern of the boat. And we notice the curl and the hair hanging down at her back.

Press HERE for next page

A Milhouse production | Copyright 2008 | www.milhouse.se
 

<%# Eval("Text") %>