I love this bright, colourful painting by Monet of the terrace of his aunt’s house, near Le Havre. Monet painted it in 1867 whilst he spent the summer there. The high horizon with its line of boats and distinct bands of colour shows the influence of Japanese art. The painting almost has a 3-D effect, but most of all I love the contrast of colours and the delicate portrayal of the flowers and figures.
It was not such a happy time for Monet as his father, shown seated in the painting, was about to cut off his allowance because of his affair with Camille Doncieux, who had just given birth to Monet’s son.
The painting, oil on canvas, is now held at the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art. I wish I could see the original!
This post is a contribution to ABC Wednesday for the letter T.
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Lovely. You wouldn’t know the back story from the painting.
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I wouldn’t note this except for my post this week, but you left out a T word – TO Monet’s son.
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Oops! thanks for that – I’ve put it in!
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Margaret – Oh, I agree! This is a delightful painting, isn’t it? And you’ve made some fascinating observations about it.
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Love this painting my Monet. I visited his home in France in October and loved being surrounded by the spirit of this great artist.
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I’m so glad you shared this back story, Margaret! I have a framed print of this lovely painting hanging in my living room! I love anything to do with the ocean and Monet is one of my favorite artists. I especially like the splashes of red in his painting.
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