Two Paintings that Capture Claude Monet’s Relentless Development as an Artist

How did Monet evolve from one to the other?

Left: On the Bank of the Seine, Bennecourt (1868) by Claude Monet. Oil on canvas. 81.5 × 100.7 cm. Art Institute of Chicago, U.S. Image source Art Institute of Chicago. Right: Branch of the Seine near Giverny (Mist) (1897) by Claude Monet. Oil on canvas. 89.9 × 92.7 cm. Art Institute of Chicago, U.S. Image source Art Institute of Chicago

These two paintings by Claude Monet were created nearly three decades apart. Both images are high points of Monet’s artistic output, yet their differences are striking.

Between them they encapsulate the development of his painting style over time. So how did Monet go from one to the other?

Monet in 1868

The earlier work is a wonderfully vivid outdoor sketch of the river Seine, realised in such a way that light seems to emanate from the surface of the canvas.

The painting shows Monet’s future wife, Camille Doncieux, sitting on an island on the River Seine. She is positioned beneath two trees, looking out across the water towards the hamlet of Gloton. They are in the French countryside, some fifteen miles northwest of Paris, near to the town of Bennecourt.

On the Bank of the Seine, Bennecourt (1868) by Claude Monet. Oil on canvas. 81.5 × 100.7 cm. Art Institute of Chicago, U.S. Image source Art Institute of Chicago

There is a hint of narrative in the painting: in front of Camille is the rowing boat they used to travel across to the island. And over the water there is a track leading down to the jetty…