Photo Ariane Cauderlier, Monet’s water lily pond at Giverny, 7th July 2022
When Claude Monet didn’t paint, he could sit next to his water lily pond and observe it for long minutes. He was fascinated by the changing aspect of the surface. Some corners can be totally green, like this one, others reflecting the sky may be blue or animated by passing clouds. And the breeze blurs the surface in some places, ignoring other ones. Not to speak of the slow motion of the water lilies, opening in the morning and closing in the late afternoon.
Photo Ariane Cauderlier, Monet’s Garden in Giverny, 14th June 2022
Claude Monet ornated the main path of his flowers garden at Giverny with very large arbors on which he grew different varieties of roses. The present day gardeners have planted four roses at the feet of each arch : two ramblers for the show in June, and two remontant climbers for a lasting effect in Summer. They aren’t necessarily the same color, as can be seen on the second arch on the photo. A wide range of pink poppies (papaver somniferum) in matching colors fill the flower bed below, creating an harmony in green and pink with the house on the back.
Photo Ariane Cauderlier, 13th May 2022, Monet’s Garden in Giverny
On the left side of the house, the garden of Claude Monet ends in a cul-de-sac. Protected by a high wall, pink roses thrive there. If you visit Giverny, don’t miss this corner of the flower garden, it is the perfect time of year to see – and smell! – roses.
Photo Ariane Cauderlier, Monet’s Garden in Giverny, 13th May 2022
Many visitors report that they feel inspired by Monet’s gardens at Giverny. “I haven’t painted for decades,” they tell me, “but now I feel tempted to take the brushes again.”
Claude Monet’s water lily pond is inspiring, for sure. The master of impressionism painted it year after year, relentlessly. It is not only breathtakingly beautiful, it is also very picturesque: worth being painted.
Photo Ariane Cauderlier, Monet’s Garden in Giverny, 27th April 2022
April is a very colorful month at Giverny, thank to thousands and thousands of tulips, underplanted with pansies, wallflowers and forget-me-not. Monet combined short flower beds and very long ones, inspired by the colorful stripes of the tulipfields that he had seen in Holland.
The sun has been shining on Giverny lately, awakening flowers and buds. Spring is back, and for the first time in three years the Monet gardens are due to open on their usual opening day: April 1st.
We all are super excited ! There is joy and relief in the air, after two long seasons impacted by the pandemic. As I am writing this post, no mask nor vaccination pass are required any more. You can either buy your ticket online or on site, though it is recommended to use e-tickets to avoid waiting in line.
The gardens will be as lovely and stunning as usual, and the Musee des Impressionnismes Giverny treats us with a Monet/Rothko exhibition that will please the many fans of both artists, I hope. The museum opened last week.
Coffee-shops and little restaurants are preparing their open air terrasses, and birds have started their spring concert. Guides, like me, read their notes once again to remember every single detail. In Monet’s gardens, the gardeners hurry to take advantage of the empty garden to finish their winter tasks. Everything will look pristine next Friday ! 🙂
Giverny, white garden of the Musee des Impressionnismes
While at Giverny, you shouldn’t miss the beautiful ‘Musee des Impressionnismes’, a few steps away only from Monet’s place. Because it has great exhibitions organized with the help of Musee d’Orsay in Paris, the very specialist of this art movement in France. And because of its stunning garden. This is a corner of the white garden at the tulips time, mid or late April, with the backdrop of blossoming cherry trees.
This year the season will start on March 18, 2022 with an exhibition I am already eager to see: Monet / Rothko. It should be an uplifting feast of colors. (up to July 3, 2022). It will be followed on July 14 by The Collection’s Summer, up to October 2, 2022.
Blanche Hoschedé-Monet, The pond at Giverny, musee A.-G. Poulain, Vernon, France
In the vicinity of Giverny, the little town of Vernon has a museum that is well worth a visit, at least for its impressionist rooms that include two beautiful Monets. The museum Alphonse-Georges-Poulain also owns 8 works by Blanche Hoschedé-Monet (1865 – 1947). At the same time step daughter and daughter in law of the master, Blanche was his only pupil. She often painted next to him, until she stopped when Monet lost his wife – her mother – to take care of him. Blanche resumed painting after Monet died. Then only she dared choosing his garden as a motiv. The Pond at Giverny is not dated but we can guess it was painted between 1927 and 1947. The corner Blanche picked up doesn’t appear on Monet’s works. The angle encompasses the dock on the far left, a cherry blossom, two tall trees that could be the ashes at the entrance to the water garden, the still young copper beech and probably the start of the Japanese bridge on the far right. The edges of the pond are still like in Monet’s times, with clumps of irises, peonies and rosebushes on lawns, a contrast with the present day lush flower beds all around the pond.
If you intend to visit Giverny in the next weeks, here is what awaits you at the entrance: you will be asked for your ‘pass sanitaire’ (Covid health pass) or vaccination card (more info on the French government website here), you will need to show your admission ticket (if you don’t have it yet, you can buy it on site) then you will have to open your bag for a visual check, and you will get some gel on your hands. That’s it! 🙂
When inside, you can walk as you like on the grounds, provided that you wear your mask all time. The good side of these measures is that fewer people visit Giverny. Monet’s little paradise almost for yourself? It is worth the effort, ins’t it ?
The 2021 exhibition at Musee des Impressionnismes Giverny displays paintings and photographs of gardens, from Monet to Bonnard. Impressionists and Nabis steal the show with gorgeous works full of colors, like this master piece by Monet featuring the garden of his aunt Lecadre.
In the deep shade of trees, it is hard to grow a wonderful lawn. In Monet’s gardens at Giverny, the spot under the tall copper beech had to be sawn anew every year.
This is why the head gardener came to the idea of planting a little moss garden under the old tree. “It is an attempt,” he says. “Let’s wait and see if it works.”
Monet didn’t have any moss garden, as far as we know, but surely he would love the idea: it looks so japanese. This makes it fit perfectly in this corner of the garden surrounded by bamboos, next to the famous footbridge called the Japanese bridge.
It is now official, Claude Monet’s gardens at Giverny will open on Wednesday 19th May, 2021 at 9.30 am. It will be the right time to admire roses and water lilies. I can’t wait!
Are you missing Monet’s gardens at Giverny? So do I! The gates are still locked and will stay so for several more weeks. France is under lock down at least until mid-May. Not to speak about the borders…
I took advantage of the long hours at home last year to sort out pictures taken in the gardens through the seasons. They’ve been turned into a book:
Giverny Photo Book
There is not much to read in this book, the focus is on the pictures. The texts are bilingual in English and French, except for the title 🙂
I’ve found it on amazon.fr. I had to type the title plus the editor, OREP, to get it.
I would be happy to know if Giverny en photos is available where you live. If you can find it on a website, would you please let me know? Merci beaucoup !
Claude Monet paid attention to organise a cosy sitting and reading nook in his three studios at his Giverny home. This comfy flowered settee is located in a room called salon-atelier, that’s to say living-room-studio. After moving his works in process to a larger studio in the corner of the estate, Monet turned the first studio connected with the main house into a place for entertainment. Monet liked reading aloud for his family, or playing games. This first studio was also a place where he withdrew after lunch or dinner for a little glas of brandy and a pipe or a cigarette. On special occasions, the latter would be upgraded to a cigar. Happy New Year!
While trees are changing colors from green to shades of brown and yellow, flowers offer in October fire works of bright and beautiful tones. In Monet’s gardens at Giverny, asters of all kinds steal the show, enhanced by tall yellow helianthus and amazing dahlias. Sages are at their best.
Anyway, after closing day, in November, the gardeners won’t spare any of these beauties. They will rush to clean up the flower beds and plant spring bulbs before it gets cold.
