Learning Specialist, Emma Waldman: One of my favorite ways of looking at this painting is through a viewfinder. Make a small circle with your hands and hold it up to your eyes, then squint so that you can scan the artwork from side to side as you move around and take notice of details and marks.
You might notice sections of blues and greens blending together, and as you move on, you might see some purples, pinks, and reds. These paintings were made by the artist Claude Monet at one of his favorite places in the world: his garden in Giverny, France.
Curator, Ann Temkin: When he first moved there, it was full of useful plantings like berry bushes, fruit trees, and vegetables. Monet got rid of all of those and instead began planting imported flowers of all kinds. And in the following years, he made the decision to enlarge the little pond that was across from his house. He added not only the water lilies, but all sorts of freshwater grasses, water irises, weeping willow trees.
All of the money that Monet had made was poured into that pond and those gardens at Giverny.
Emma Waldman: Let's take a look at the largest painting in this room. When I first learned that it took Monet 12 years to create this painting, I first thought, that's a long time. And then, thinking about it, I started to realize that he loved showcasing his beautiful garden that he built. So maybe, throughout these 12 years, he really took the time and the care to spend on everything.
Ann Temkin: Monet had a lot of paintings going at once, and he would nurture them like the flowers in the garden. It's this idea of paying attention to one's environment. Just looking again and again, and a lot of what Monet was up to was trying to put you in his place.
Emma Waldman: As we talked about before, identity can mean many different things. It can be your personality, what you look like, your family, your friends, but it can also be your interests.
Monet was happiest in his garden. I want you to think about a place or a hobby that evokes a certain emotion for you.