Claude Monet, Les Bords de l'Epte à Giverny, 1887
04 September 2025
The small village of Giverny was more than a home for Claude Monet; it was a living canvas and an endless source of inspiration. After years of financial instability and the loss of his first wife Camille, in 1879, Giverny became his sanctuary, where he lived until his passing in 1926. As one of the masters of the Impressionist movement, Monet captured the light and shadow of this landscape in his rapid and unique brushwork. Inspired by the tranquillity of the place, he began a focused series of twenty-four paintings that positioned the poplars along the River Epte as the centre of the composition. Known as Peupliers, the series was an extension of his prior work, Les Bordes de l’Epte à Giverny (1887).
The scene is tranquil: a gentle river, softly swaying trees and the glow of the late afternoon sun. His technique here is deceptively loose. There is a sense of motion, not dramatic but organic—like the slow drifting of time. The Epte River does not reflect the world so much as it absorbs it, dissolving the boundary between water and sky in a ripple of blues and greens. Colour is key in this work, not just in its harmony but also in its emotional resonance. With cool greens, warm golds and that ever-present blue mist, Monet softens the scene with a palette that leans toward serenity. There is no clear narrative but a constant rhythm, a pulse. Nature is observed not as a snapshot but as a breathing presence. Painting en plain air, Monet does not merely depict nature; he allows it to bloom on the canvas as if each brushstroke is a heartbeat of the landscape.
More than a study of the French countryside, Les Bords de l’Epte à Giverny is a meditation. In this quiet stretch, Monet offers not just a physical place, but a mental one in which the viewer is invited to slow down. The natural location captured Monet’s imagination, leading to a painting bathed in an ethereal haze, as though we were witnessing the land dream itself.
Claude Monet's Les Bords de l'Epte à Giverny will be on from October 3rd until November 4th in the exhibition 'The Singapore Masters Show, from Monet to Condo'.
