Women in the Garden
1866 Musée d'Orsay
About this artwork
This large-scale oil painting by Claude Monet depicts several women enjoying a sunlit garden, with Monet's future wife, Camille Doncieux, serving as the model for all four figures. The work was painted entirely en plein air, a challenging feat for a canvas of this size.
Did you know?
Monet famously dug a trench in his garden at Ville-d'Avray to allow him to lower the canvas and paint the upper sections of this monumental work while standing, ensuring a consistent perspective. This innovative approach to painting such a large composition outdoors was a testament to his commitment to capturing light and atmosphere directly from nature, a hallmark of what would become Impressionism. The painting initially faced rejection from the Salon for its modern style and subject matter.
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Women in the Garden
Claude Monet, 1866
