Water Lily Pond
1900
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
89.8 × 101 cm (35 3/8 × 39 3/4 in.); Framed: 112.4 × 122.6 × 10.2 cm (44 1/4 × 48 1/4 × 4 in.)
Classification
painting
Department
Painting and Sculpture of Europe
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
87088
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
In 1893, three years after buying property at Giverny, Claude Monet began transforming the marshy ground behind his home into a pond, on the narrow end of which he built a Japanese-style wood bridge. Adding both exotic and domestic plantings, including his famous water lilies, the artist created the garden that would be one of his principal subjects for the rest of his life. Water Lily Pond was among the 18 similar versions of the motif that he made in 1899–1900; their common theme was the mingl...
Art Historical Context
Claude Monet’s *Water Lily Pond* (1900) captures the artist at the of his fascination with light, reflection, and the natural world. As a leading figure of the Impressionist movement, Monet had by this time turned almost exclusively to his own garden at Giverny for inspiration. The painting’s modest scale and intimate viewpoint invite viewers to linger on the shimmering surface of the water, where sky, foliage, and blossoms dissolve into one another. Painted in oil on canvas, the work demonstrates Monet’s signature technique of applying loose, layered brushstrokes to suggest rather than define forms. This approach allows the play of color and light to become the true subject, embodying the Impressionist belief that perception itself is fleeting and constantly changing. The horizontal format and cropped edges further emphasize the pond’s expanse, drawing the eye across ripples and lily pads without a traditional horizon line. Today, *Water Lily Pond* stands as a beloved highlight of the Art Institute of Chicago’s European painting collection. It offers visitors a quiet moment of immersion in Monet’s lifelong quest to record the subtle beauty of his surroundings, reminding us how radical his vision once was and how enduring its appeal remains.
About the Artist
Claude Monet · 1840–1926
Claude Monet, born Oscar-Claude Monet on November 14, 1840, in Paris and raised in Le Havre, Normandy, began his artistic journey as a successful teenage caricaturist. His formal training started at the Le Havre secondary school of the arts in 1851, where he received his first drawing lessons from Jacques-François Ochard. Around 1858, he met Eugène Boudin, who became his pivotal mentor, introducin...