Foundations
Claude Monet
Rouen Cathedral, West Façade
1894
Oil on canvas, 100.1 × 65.9 cm. National Gallery of Art, Washington
Blue-violet strokes fill the shadowed stone, with flecks of peach where light catches the towers; the rose window is a dark blue disc. Across more than thirty views of this façade, the gallery says, color above all sets each canvas apart.
- A companion canvas in the same gallery shows the front in full sun: cream, gold and pale pink under a deep blue sky.
- The gallery's description compares the blurred surface to a reflection broken up on rippling water.
- He reworked the series in the studio; a curator notes he exaggerated the light and used color for mood.
The gallery's audio guide traces the series' color from pinks and yellows to deep greens and blues as the light dims.
Concepts
Image: National Gallery of Art Open Access · CC0