Claude Monet, Bathers at La Grenouillère
1869Claude Monet, Bathers at La Grenouillère
1869Paintings sorted by Historical period | Painter | Subject matter | Pigments used
Location
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The Musèe de la Grenouillère is dedicated to the Impressionists and paintings created in the area on the Seine.
Related Paintings
Claude Monet, La Grenouillère, 1869
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Pierre-Auguste Renoir, La Grenouillère, 1869
Collection Oskar Reinhart in Winterthur, Switzerland
Pierre-Auguste Renoir, La Grenouillère, 1869
National Museum, Stockholm, Sweden
Image in high resolution
Pierre-Auguste Renoir, La Grenouillère, 1869
The Hermitage, St Petersburg, Russia
Overview
Medium: Oil
Support: Canvas
Size: 73 x 92 cm
Art period: Impressionism
National Gallery London
NG6456
The painting in the National Gallery in London is one of the two sketches of the popular summer destinations La Grenouillère on the Seine close to Bougival. The other sketch is now in the Metropolitan Museum of Arts in New York. The final version which Monet painted later is now lost. Renoir also spent two months at La Grenouillère in 1869 and painted several versions such as the one now in the Collection Oskar Reinhart in Winterthur, Switzerland, and the one now in the Nationalmuseum in Stockholm. See also “Related paintings” on this page.
The London painting marks an important turning point in his work. He painted it fully in the open with vigorous strokes of his brush to achieve a complete impression of the scene before him (2).
References
(1) Bomford D, Kirby J, Leighton, J., Roy A. Art in the Making: Impressionism. National Gallery Publications, London, 1990, pp. 120-125.
(2) Wilson, M., Wyld, M., Roy, A. ‘Monet’s “Bathers at La Grenouillère”‘. National Gallery Technical Bulletin Vol 5, pp 14–25.
Pigments
Pigment Analysis
The pigment analysis is based on the work of the scientists in the National Gallery in London who investigated the painting on the occasion of its cleaning and restoration in 1981 (1,2).
1 Red flowers on the left side of the painting: pure vermilion.
2 Dark blue dresses of bathers: Prussian blue
3 Blue water: principal pigment is cobalt blue either pure or mixed with lead white and cobalt violet in the lighter tones and mixed with Prussian blue in the darker tones.
4 Yellow trees in the background on the left: a mixture of chrome yellow (lead chromate) and lemon yellow (barium chromate).
5 Light green foliage on the left: chrome green, which was an (at that time) commercially available mixture of Prussian blue and chrome yellow.
6 Dull green gunwale of the boat in the lower-left edge: a mixture of emerald green, cobalt blue, and a little viridian.
7 Mauve colored flowers on the left: cobalt violet mixed with other pigments.
8 Dark water between the boats: ivory black mixed with small amounts of cobalt blue and red ochre to indicate a nuance of colour.
References
(1) Bomford D, Kirby J, Leighton, J., Roy A. Art in the Making: Impressionism. National Gallery Publications, London, 1990, pp. 120-125.
(2) Wilson, M., Wyld, M., Roy, A. ‘Monet’s “Bathers at La Grenouillère”‘. National Gallery Technical Bulletin Vol 5, pp 14–25.
Pigments Used in This Painting
Resources
See the collection of online and offline resources such as books, articles, videos, and websites on Claude Monet in the section ‘Resources on Painters‘
Videos
Video: 'The Science Behind Monet's Color' by University of Rochester
Video: 'A Collection of 1540 Paintings (HD)' by LearnFromMasters
Publications and Websites
Publications
(1) Bomford D, Kirby J, Leighton, J., Roy A. Art in the Making: Impressionism. National Gallery Publications, London, 1990, pp. 120-125.
(2) Wilson, M., Wyld, M., Roy, A. ‘Monet’s “Bathers at La Grenouillère”‘. National Gallery Technical Bulletin Vol 5, pp 14–25.
Websites
Claudemonetgallery.org. (2017). Biography of Claude Oscar Monet.
Monet Paintings and Drawings at the Art Institute of Chicago A very thorough and interactive catalog of Monet’s works at the Art Institute of Chicago. Contains detailed information on the history, provenance, and technical aspects of the paintings and drawings.
