Museums in Paris: Musée Marmottan Monet (Part 1 of 2)

One of our favorite museums anywhere is the Musée Marmottan Monet here in Paris.  It is home to the world's largest collection of Claude Monet's works.  

The museum is a former hunting lodge near the Bois de Boulogne on the western edge of Paris.  The home and its collection of Renaissance and First Empire art and furniture were donated in 1934 to create a museum.  Over the next five decades, three large collections of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art were donated to the museum, including a donation by Claude Monet's only surviving heir.  As a result, the museum is a must-visit destination if you adore Monet and Impressionist art, like Susan does.  

When we visited, the museum was hosting two temporary exhibitions.  One exhibition featured a varied collection of 19th and 20th century works by mostly French painters.  The theme of the paintings is scenes and places around the Mediterranean.

"Oriental Visions, From Dreams Into Light"

(You can see more of the paintings by clicking here.)  

Another temporary exhibition features very recent works by a guest artist.  The museum has decided to extend invitations to guest artists to complete "works that resonate with the museum's permanent collection" resulting in a sort of "unexpected dialogue".

In a separate gallery at the museum, we saw "Unexpected Dialogues--Monet/Fromanger, Impression, Soleil Levant 2019".  The guest artist Gérard Fromager shared some of his past paintings and created some new paintings.    The Fromanger paintings were interspersed with Impressionist masterpieces.

Below is a typical Fromanger painting in the foreground with a Monet painting in the background. 

Photo by Philippe Hennebelle

Also displayed in the gallery were paintings by Pissaro and Caillbotte.

We liked Fromanger's recent portraits featuring French artists, including Cézanne and Monet.

What made seeing the exhibition absolutely worthwhile was viewing this famous Monet painting which lent its name to the Impressionist movement:

Seeing the painting in person is a wonderful experience.  Susan had little tears in her eyes. The rich colors, warm depth and overall beauty were all amazing--there's something that simply cannot be captured in a photograph.  Apologies.  However, if you visit us in Paris we will happily return to see it again.    

Next Up:  Beaucoup de Monet.

P.S.  It's time for a Pop Quiz.  The work of art below appears in the museum.  For 100 points, identify the name and title of the person that is pictured?