Title: La Seine à Lavacourt
Artist: Claude Monet (French, 1840-1926)
Medium: oil on canvas
Dimensions: 60.2 x 81.5 cm
Date Created: 1879
Description
In the high summer of 1879, Monet painted this seductive view of the Seine from his garden gate at Vétheuil. Facing west, he captured the riverside village of Lavacourt across the water, its red-roofed houses nestled along the horizon. The sky is filled with cumulus clouds, their reflections trembling on the gently rippling surface stirred by a breeze.
Monet had moved to this rural hamlet the previous year, seeking respite from financial strain and modern encroachments. Vétheuil offered an older, timeless vision of the French countryside. Here, the artist entered a decisive period of transformation. He abandoned scenes of modern leisure and turned his focus wholly to nature’s fleeting effects, developing an early serial approach that would define his later work.
This canvas presents the widest vista of the group. Morning light streams from behind the artist, dancing on the water and illuminating the distant facades. The composition is serene yet alive—the broad expanse of river dominates the foreground, with only sparse reeds hinting at the marshy bank. It is a vision of perfect summer calm.
Painted during a period of personal hardship, the landscape offered Monet profound solace. Though created outdoors with immediacy, the view transcends mere observation, acquiring a timeless, elegiac quality. This work would later be exhibited at the 1880 Salon, where it was praised for its luminous atmosphere, marking a significant moment in Monet’s evolving artistic path.
Image Download
Image Dimensions: 3200 x 2342 pixels
Image Size: 416 KB
Image Format: JPG
Print Resolution: 300 dpi
Download Format: ZIP Archive
License: Public Domain, Free for Commercial Use
