Claude Monet is a key figure in Impressionism, who committed himself to paint visual impression appreciated by an artist by capturing images of instantaneous light beyond just painting objective reality.
In this study, I have divided Monet's paintings into four periods based on the unique features of each period. The first period was from 1859 to 1871, when he lived in Paris, when he left Le Havre where he spent his childhood and re-entered Paris and then went to England due to the Franco-Prussian War. In this period, he began to open his eyes to Impressionism and was interested in nature as a subject in his art and had close relationship with Renoir, Bauguil, and Sisley in the studio of Charles Gleyre. Then he met his model Camille.
In the second period, from 1871 to 1878, which is called the Argenteuil period, he returned to Paris right after the Franco-Prussian was end and spent seven years in Argenteuil on the Seine River. In this period, he painted the expression of light by color divisionism, one of the main technique of Impressionism, and the expression of a strange atmosphere. And in 1874, He hosted the first joint exhibition with other artists who had been rejected at the Salon exhibition. The third period, from 1878 to 1881, which corresponds to the Vetheuil period, he stayed for 4 years in Vetheuil, the lower of the Seine River. Monet committed himself to the paining, but he went through hard times in economic sense, and his beloved Camille died. By and large his paintings during this period exhibited a dark and gloomy mood.
The fourth period, 1883-1926, which corresponds to the Giverny period, when he settled down in Giverny along the river Abt. In this period, he began to involve with his international activities and from the late 1980s he began to gain wealth and fame. It is also this period when he spent all his time and efforts in his work, while traveling to various places. His brush strokes were short, and he used squiggle touches of brush instead of frequent multiple touches,. From 1890, Monet mainly began to paint series of artworks. He loved his pond he himself made and cultivated, and focused on water lily series with this very pond as the subject of his painting. Monet inquired into deeply water, light and color in his garden throughout his life, capturing and expressing the ever-changing flow of light, creating his own unique style of painting. In particular, the water lilies at Giverny Pond, which he painted from 1899 to 1926, were considered as the pinnacle of his artworks.
Monet's unique originality and experimental spirit continued for long time throughout his life had a huge influence on 20th century art, including American abstract expressionism to action painting, from minimalism to conceptual art in modern times after World War II.