Monet and the Impressionist Cityscape

Claude Monet, Quai du Louvre (detail), 1867 © Kunstmuseum Den Haag - bequest Mr. and Mrs. G.L.F. Philips-van der Willigen, 1942

In this exhibition, Claude Monet’s three earliest views of Paris from the year 1867 are exhibited as a series for the first time. The works are considered the first Impressionist cityscapes and inspired artists such as Gustave Caillebotte (1848–1894) and Camille Pissarro (1830–1903) to produce paintings of the modern city under renewal.

Monet’s series of paintings from 1867 cast a new creative eye on the modern city. The artist did not visit the famous Louvre to copy works of the Old Masters, as was customary, instead painting the vibrant life of Paris from his balcony. In doing so, he literally turned his back on art historical tradition and concerned himself with the present in the growing metropolis.

This resulted in three remarkable views of Paris, depicting Saint Germain l’Auxerrois, the Jardin de l’Infante, and the Quai du Louvre. Today, these works are in the collections of the Nationalgalerie in Berlin, the Allen Memorial Art Museum at Oberlin College (Ohio, USA), and the Kunstmuseum Den Haag, respectively. Collaboration between the three museums has made it possible to reunite the important paintings.

Beginning with these three works, the exhibition traces the rediscovery of the city as a motif by Impressionist and Post-Impressionist artists following in the tradition of Monet (1840–1926) and ranging from Maximilien Luce (1858–1941) to Henri Matisse (1869–1954). This concise exhibition on the Impressionist cityscape comprises around twenty works of painting, photography and graphic art.