Paris, 1863–1906

Claude Monet

La Grenouillère

1869

Oil on canvas, 29 1/4 × 39 1/4 in. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926). Look at the water: it is built from separate strokes, not smoothly blended paint.

Look at

• Short, curved strokes of blue, white, green and black sit side by side across the water.
• Each stroke stays distinct, so the water seems to move and catch the light.
• The figures on the round island are a few dark dabs each.
• The trees behind are broad patches of yellow-green, with little detail.

• Monet painted it at a riverside bathing spot near Paris, working beside Renoir.

Image: Wikimedia Commons (CC0 file from The Met's Open Access release) · CC0