Claude Monet's Garden, Giverny

[Philip]

Claude Monet (1840 - 1926) was generally considered the most influential painter of his generation. His use of bright, primary colours dabbed onto the canvas made folks think differently about art. In 1874 he was exhibited along with Renoir, Cezanne, Degas, Pissaro and others in the photographer Nadal's studios; Impressionism was born.

But that's enough about all that. Monet was a great lover of the outdoors, not a studio painter, and 'twas in 1883 he spotted a house from the window of the small Vernon - Gasny train which appeared to him to be in an idyllic setting. Well, he could scrape together a few bob by then so he put in an offer, which was accepted. Happy days for Claude, his wife and their eight children. The garden was originally an orchard with a central avenue bordered by spruce, yew and boxwood. Two yews in front of the house are all that remains of that garden. The spruce and boxwood were replaced by a series of iron hoops upon which roses could climb. The remaining orchard on the other side of the avenue was transformed into a flower-dotted lawn with cherry and Japanese apple trees, and flowerbeds aplenty. In 1893 Monet bought a marshy piece of land just beyond his perimeter wall and proceeded to turn this plot into something completely different to the formality of the closed garden. This new water garden was made to meander about in the Japanese manner and our hero spent many hours there, painting away. Can you spot him in the model?

The kit, designed by Christiane Remblier and illustrated by Jean-William Hanoteau, is a L'Instant Durable production from 1993. There's no quoted scale but the base measures 47 x 31 cm. This took me a very long time to build and it was nearly abandoned more than once because of the sheer volume of detailed cutting involved. It had to be put aside until glimmers of enthusiasm returned. Which could take quite a while, I have to admit.

The real garden: Claude Monet's garden at Giverny

[SCEtoAUX]

That looks real nice. It does look like a lot of intricate cutting.

[Michael Mash]

I think the master himself would approve.
Nice that you did not abandon the effort.
Mike

[Madbrit]

Philip, incroyable mon ami !!

Derek

[Butelczynski]

I don't think I have ever seen this kind of model for sale anywhere. It's very eye catching. It reminds me of old French kits with kind of 3D effect picture of buildings. I think you or someone else presented one or two of them here.

Beautiful work.

[Vermin_King]

One that definitely draws the eye.

I think I could flip through the photos over and over and not grow tired of looking at it.

You always seem to find intriguing models, sir

[Don Boose]

This is a wonderful model, Philip! I enjoyed seeing it and applaud your dedication to completing it. Monet was indeed a marvelous artist of enduring influence,

Don

[Erik Zwaan]

This is certainly a very nicely built model! It captures the garden wonderfully. The late 1800s were a magic age for painters like Monet and I fully agree with Vermin_King, you really have an eye for unusual (and intriguing) models, Philip!

Erik

[Siwi]

There is just a hint of attempting Monet's pointillist style in the way the kit is painted. Glad you saw it through.

[Philip]

Many thanks for popping in and leaving your comments, friends. You must have known I'd just put the kettle on. Milk? Sugar?