‘A landscape does not exist in its own right, since its appearance changes at every moment.’ Claude Monet wrote these words in 1891, a few years before he took this idea further than any painter in history with Water Lilies, a series of more than 200 works that capture his flower garden in Giverny over some 30 years – an argument, rendered at monumental scale, that no two moments are ever the same. In the 1920s, the French government had two rooms constructed at the Musée de l’Orangerie for a permanent display of eight of these works. These are now being joined by some 30 other paintings in an exhibition that explores how Monet captured the passing of time – not just in quiet garden scenes but also in well-known depictions of Charing Cross Bridge, Waterloo Bridge and the Houses of Parliament in London (30 September–25 January 2027).
Find out more from the Musée de l’Orangerie’s website.
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