Claude Monet in Impressionism
Top 4 Facts about Claude Monet!
- Claude Monet is one of the most famous artists in the world!🎨
- Let’s learn a bit about him. He was born in Paris, France in 1840. 🇫🇷
- He is famous for his oil paintings and they are shown in art galleries all over the world! 🌏
- His main subject to paint was landscapes and his art is in a category called “Impressionism.” 🎨
What is Impressionism?
Impressionism is a style of painting that was first created in France in the 1860s. It started as artists were inspired to start drawing and painting outside in the fresh air. 🔆
You can read more about Impressionism here: https://www.art-k.co.uk/6-a-kids-guide-to-modern-art-movements/ 🕵️♂️
Claude Monet was one of the first artists who took all of his art materials outside and started painting the landscapes near where he lived in France. Painting outside has a special French name. It is called, “en plein air,” which translates into English as “open air.” 🏡
What is His Work Like?
Monet’s work is very colourful as he loved nature and the changing light, from when the sun rises to when the sun sets, every month of the year! 🌅
When you look at Monet’s artwork, you will notice how many colours overlap! Sometimes it might even look a bit messy, but that is because he had to capture the colours so quickly before the outside light changed. ⌚️
By putting down a brush stroke quickly, he created these lovely strokes and overlapping colours.🌈
If you look at any impressionist artist you will notice the same style, lots of vibrant colour and overlapping brushstrokes. 🧑🏭
What Made Claude Monet So Special?
Monet LOVED natural light. What does this mean? Let’s think about it. 🤔
Have you ever been outside, maybe at the beach or at the local park, and seen the most beautiful sunset? Maybe the sky was orange, pink and purple all at the same time. You might have looked at the sunset and thought how beautiful it was. Maybe you took a picture on a camera because the sunset was so beautiful! 🥰
This is how Claude Monet felt about the sunset too. Except he didn’t have a camera! So what he had to do instead it paint it right there in that moment before the sky changed colour.🌅
Natural light is the colour of the sky, the colour that reflects off objects depending on where the sun is and if there are clouds or objects in the way. 🌤️
If you have ever admired a sunset, or a rainbow or a cool shadow on the ground, you must like natural light too! So you have something in common with Claude Monet! 🤓
His attention to colour and beautiful landscapes is what made Monet so special. 🤩
Famous Artworks
Most famous galleries all over the world will have at least one Claude Monet painting. We are very lucky in the UK that there are many Monet paintings to discover! 🇬🇧
In the National Gallery in London there is even a whole room dedicated to Impressionist art and most of the room is full of paintings by Claude Monet, and it is free to see! 🏫
Here is a great example of how Monet liked to paint the same scene but at different times of the day and year. You can see ALL of them here (there are a lot!) 🎨 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haystacks_(Monet_series) but here are some included below:
A Monet challenge for you at home!
Have you ever tried painting outside?
Why not take a sketchbook, a pencil, a jam jar with a lid for water for your brushes and some watercolours outside. 📚
You can sit on the grass or on a bench in a park, the doorstep of your house, and draw on your lap. Every artist has to start somewhere. 🖌️
If you decided to try drawing or painting outside, we would love to see a photo of you trying it! Email us at admin@art-k.co.uk 😊
