The WPI Oral Histories provide unprecedented firsthand accounts from art historians, archivists, gallerists, and others with close connections to WPI’s research projects. Issued in installments throughout 2021, each oral history will complement the WPI’s unique material. The WPI’s Oral History Series accompanies its forthcoming Catalogue Raisonné Projects. Some explore the artist’s life and work, and most cover scholarly […]
WPI Oral Histories Read More »
Still lifes are often considered a minor genre or a plain subject of study; in fact, the genre is not as static and silent as we think. In the nineteenth century, the genre revealed the intimate bonds that united several Impressionist painters. As discreet witnesses to the daily life of these artists, still lifes can
The Things of Friendship Read More »
Almost 150 years ago, Théodore Duret (1838-1927), a defender of the Impressionists, went on a world tour with Henry Cernuschi.1 It was on this fateful tour, from 1871 to 1872, that Duret encountered the arts of Japan. Of the first stops in London and the United States, Duret left no written record of his travels.
Théodore Duret in Japan Read More »
The Reception of the Riviera Paintings As we discovered previously, Monet’s encounter with the Mediterranean coast was torn between a fascination for its lush vegetation and the difficulty to render the atmosphere of the Riviera. Upon returning to Giverny in late April 1884, Monet felt apprehensive of his paintings’ critical reception, but in fact was
Claude Monet’s Encounter with the Mediterranean – Part 2 Read More »
In December 1883, Claude Monet left Giverny and traveled to the French and Italian Rivieras for one week with his friend and fellow Impressionist, Pierre-Auguste Renoir. Following Monet’s military service in Algeria twenty years earlier, he had become an avid traveler. Monet realized a number of works during visits to England in 1870 and the
Claude Monet’s Encounter with the Mediterranean – Part 1 Read More »
In Giverny, a small village located about 75km west of Paris, Claude Monet owned the “Pressoir” house as well as the gardens that surrounded it. He also rented a piece of land with a small body of water between the Chemin du Roy and the Epte river where he cultivated a few aquatic plants [Fig.
Claude Monet: The Water Lily Pond Read More »
