Monet was born in Paris but then moved out to Le Havre on the northern Normandy coast with his family. A local painter noticed his caricatures and encouraged him to start being a more serious painter and paint outside. This inspired him and the other painters that he associated with, along with the use of colors from his military time in North Africa and the flower-filled fields of Normandy.
The Impressionists came up around the same time as photography in the late 1800s. As photography spread, the purpose of art to record the history of people and places became somewhat obsolete as photos could now do this instead. So art took a more fanciful turn and Monet and other painters began to play with the light and making "impressions" of what landscape scenes would look like as the light and seasons changed rather than a realistic approach. It was a somewhat rebellious movement at the time and Monet became one of the fathers of this movement. It is known for its almost watercolor look, lack of brush strokes, and use of color to portray light.
Monet lived in Giverny for 43 years and is buried in the churchyard in Giverny. Many of his most famous paintings were done here among the gardens at Giverny. In his house are reproductions of his paintings, with the originals in various museums in Paris and through the world.
Words cannot describe this place. The scent of flowers, the sunlight, the just amazing beauty and feeling of peace. Simply amazing.
I have hundreds of photos we will start with ones that have people in them and I'll do a second post with the flowers.
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