An artwork on Galleree from Cleveland Museum of Art.
About the artwork
The Red Kerchiefc. 1868–73
Claude Monet
Claude Monet spent his youth in Le Havre in Normandy, where his father worked as a wholesale grocer. By the age of sixteen, he had exhibited some of his caricatures in an art supply store, leading to his acquaintance with Boudin (q.v.). It was Boudin who first encouraged him to paint out of doors. In 1859 Monet traveled to Paris, where he saw Boudin's salon debut and met Constant Troyon (1810-1865). A year later he joined the Académie Suisse, where he was introduced to Pissarro (q.v.), but his studies were interrupted in 1861 when he was drafted for a seven-year stint in the military. His family would pay for his release from military duties only if he gave up painting. Finding this unacceptable, Monet served for one year in Algeria before an early return to France to convalesce after a severe illness. In 1862 he met Jongkind (q.v.), another important influence on the young painter's development. Monet's father then allowed him to pursue his art career in Paris, where he entered the studio of the Swiss painter Charles Gleyre (1806-1874). He studied with Gleyre until 1864 and befriended Frédéric Bazille (1841-1870), Renoir (q.v.), and Sisley (q.v.), with whom he painted in the forest of Fontainebleau (Déjeuner sur l'herbe, 1865, two fragments in Musée d'Orsay, Paris). Monet first exhibited at the Salon of 1865 and would do so again in 1866, 1868, and 1880. In 1868 he shared a studio with Bazille and Renoir but was soon forced to leave Paris to escape his creditors. He took his mistress, Camille Doncieux, and their son, Jean, to Fécamp, then Étretat, and finally Saint-Michel. There Renoir provided hospitality, and the two also painted at the boating and bathing center of La Grenouillère on the Seine. In 1870 Monet married Camille and, to escape the Franco-Prussian War, left for London, where he remained for nine months and met Durand-Ruel, his first dealer. In the summer of 1871 he visited the Netherlands and then settled in Argenteuil, to the west of Paris. He converted a boat into a studio, as Daubigny (q.v.) had done before him, allowing him to explore different viewpoints for his landscapes. He assisted in the organization of the First Impressionist Exhibition in 1874, partly because Durand-Ruel's worsened business situation had prevented the dealer from buying his art. The following year he participated in the Hôtel Drouot sale with Morisot (q.v.), Renoir, and Sisley. In 1878 Monet and his wife moved to Vétheuil with the Hoschedés, who had previously commissioned some works. Camille died the following year, and, while Ernest Hoschedé spent most of his time in Paris trying to settle his precarious financial situation, Monet stayed behind with Ernest's wife, Alice. In 1881 he moved with her and her children to Poissy and within two years was living at Giverny, where he would remain for the rest of his life. He painted some of his famous scenes-the haystack and poplar series, for example- in 1890-91. Ernest Hoschedé died in 1891, and Monet married Alice the following year. At Giverny, Monet explored the themes of his garden and water lilies. He continued to travel, going to Norway in 1895, making three trips to London from 1899 through 1901, and taking Alice to Venice in 1908. The final years of his life were mainly spent working on his Great Decorations, large paintings of a water lily pond designed for two oval rooms at the Paris Orangerie. Monet is generally considered the most typical exponent of impressionism.
This painting depicts Monet's first wife, Camille, outside on a snowy day passing by the French doors of their home at Argenteuil. Her face is rendered in a radically bold Impressionist technique of mere daubs of paint quickly applied, just as the snow and trees are defined by broad, broken strokes of pure white and green.
Madame Monet’s red cape draws the viewer’s attention beyond the glass of the French doors capturing her glance, a brief moment frozen in time. This painting was very special to Monet and he kept it with him for his entire life.
oil on fabric
Framed: 128.3 x 105.7 x 14.6 cm (50 1/2 x 41 5/8 x 5 3/4 in.); Unframed: 99 x 79.8 cm (39 x 31 7/16 in.)
Bequest of Leonard C. Hanna, Jr.
In the heart of winter, a soft snow blankets the ground, transforming the familiar into a serene wonderland. Before us lies a painting, a window into a moment that strikes a chord deep within the soul. Here stands Camille, Monet's beloved first wife, framed by the French doors of their charming home in Argenteuil.
In this vivid portrayal, she is not merely positioned; she embodies the scene, her presence interwoven with the gentle hush of falling snow. The artist has employed a radical Impressionist technique to capture her likeness—quick daubs of paint create her face, a testament to the fleeting nature of time and memory. Each stroke is a whisper of connection, evoking her spirit, vibrant even amid the crisp chill of winter.
Around her, the snowflakes joyfully dance down, blanketing the trees and the world in soft white. Monet captures their essence with broad strokes, a blend of pure white and green cascading into a harmonious embrace. This is more than art; it is a symphony of light and color, a capture of a fleeting moment wrapped in the embrace of love and nature.
As we gaze upon this painting, we are invited to reflect on our connections and the beauty of ephemeral moments, knowing that like snow, they are lovely but fleeting.
About the artist
Creating transformative experiences through art “for the benefit of all the people forever.”The Cleveland Museum of Art is renowned for the quality and breadth of its collection, which includes more than 66,500 artworks and spans 6,000 years of achievement in the arts. The artworks shared on this platform are sourced from the museum's Open Access data under the CC0 license. No endorsement is implied.Address: 11150 East Boulevard, Cleveland, OH, USA 44106
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