Monet

Description

Hailed the "Prince of the Impressionists", Claude Monet (1840-1926) transformed expectations for the purpose of paint on canvas. Defying the precedent of centuries, Monet did not seek to render only reality, but the act of perception itself. Working "en plein air" with rapid, impetuous brush strokes, he interrogated the play of light on the hues, patterns, and contours and the way in which these visual impressions fall upon the eye. Monet's interest in this space "between the motif and the artist" encompassed too the ephemeral nature of each image we see. In his beloved water lily series, as well as in paintings of poplars, grain stacks, and the Rouen cathedral, he returned to the same motif in different seasons, different weather conditions, and at different times of the day, to explore the constant mutability of our visual environment. This book offers the essential introduction to an artist whose works simultaneously reflected upon the purpose of a picture and the passage of time, and in so doing transformed irrevocably the story of art. About the series Born back in 1985, the Basic Art Series has evolved into the best-selling art book collection ever published. Each book in TASCHEN's Basic Art series features: a detailed chronological summary of the life and oeuvre of the artist, covering his or her cultural and historical importance a concise biography approximately 100 illustrations with explanatory captions Surnomme le "Prince des impressionnistes", Claude Monet (1840-1926) bouleverse les attentes a l'egard de la peinture sur toile. Defiant des conventions vieilles de plusieurs siecles, Monet ne cherchait pas seulement a rendre compte de la realite, mais de l'acte de perception en lui-meme. Installe en plein air, a coups de brosse rapides et impetueux, il explora la maniere dont les jeux de lumiere modifiaient les teintes, les motifs, les contours, et dont ces impressions visuelles etaient percues par l'oeil. L'interet de Monet pour cet espace "entre le sujet et l'artiste" englobe la nature ephemere de chaque image que nous voyons. Qu'il s'agisse de sa celebre serie des nympheas, de ses peupliers, de ses meules de foin ou de sa cathedrale de Rouen, il revient aux memes sujets au fil des saisons, des variations meteorologiques, a differentes heures de la journee, pour saisir la mutabilite constante de notre environnement visuel. Ce livre presente l'essence d'un artiste dont l'oeuvre, reflexion simultanee sur la raison d'etre d'un tableau et sur le temps qui passe, a irrevocablement transforme l'histoire de l'art. A propos de la collection Chaque volume de la Basic Art Series de TASCHEN contient: une chronologique detaillee de la vie et de l'oeuvre de l'artiste qui rend compte de son importance culturelle et artistique une biographie concise une centaine d'illustrations couleur accompagnees de legendes explicatives

Christoph Heinrich studied art history, theater, and German literature in Vienna and Munich, receiving his doctorate for his work on the changing concept of the monument in contemporary art. From 1994 till 2007, he was employed at the Hamburger Kunsthalle, where he was appointed curator of the Galerie der Gegenwart in 1997. Since 2007, Heinrich has been working as the Modern and Contemporary art curator at the Denver Art Museum. He is the author of numerous books and articles on 20th-century and contemporary art.