“Without the water the lilies cannot live, as I am without art.” —Claude Monet

Claude Monet created around 250 paintings in his Water Lilies series over the last three decades of his life.

Like many of his works, Monet’s series was inspired by his garden in Giverny, France. Monet had an immense love for nature and because of this, he transformed a part of his property into a beautiful landscape. He cultivated his garden as a subject for his paintings and called that his greatest masterpiece.

For over 40 years, Monet invested in his garden. After purchasing land across his home in 1893, he added a pond by diverting water from a stream connected to the Epte River. This artificial pond became a subject of his most famous paintings including “The Water Lily Pond” and “The Japanese Bridge.” Monet also planted weeping willows, water lilies, wisteria, irises, and even bamboo. He was the first to grow exotic water lilies in the region, curating them for their colors and did the same with other flowers like oriental poppies, tulips, dahlias, and nasturtiums, choosing them for their contrasting and vivid colors.

Monet began his highly ambitious Water Lilies series during World War I at 73 years old after being encouraged by close friend Georges Clemenceau who later became Prime Minister. Before that, Monet experienced 3 years of artistic inactivity after facing depression that came from the death of his wife Alice and his eldest son, Jean. Despite loving art all his life, he called painting “unremitting torture” because of the personal tragedies he faced. 

Clemenceau made sure Monet had plenty of art supplies despite wartime rations and in return, Monet donated his works to the French nation. At first, Monet offered two of the large scale panels, but Clemancau convinced him to create a total of eight. The panoramic, curved panels were specifically designed for the Museé de l’Orangerie in Paris as a memorial for the lives lost in World War I and as a symbol of peace. The war had devastated France, killing millions and leaving much of the country in ruins. Monet himself had been deeply affected as he could hear the gunfire near Giverny where he lived and because his sons were serving in the war. 

Despite suffering from cataracts that blurred his vision and perception of color, Monet was determined to continue painting. His cataracts made him see the world as more of a hazy yellow, and to compensate, he used more blues to cancel it out, apparent in his Water Lillies. His perseverance through all the challenges he faced allowed him to create the most significant series of art in his life. Because of this, he will always be remembered as one of the most talented and influential impressionist artists of our time.