Claude Monet (1840–1926) was a pioneering French painter and the leading figure of the Impressionist movement, which revolutionized the approach to capturing light and atmosphere in art.

Monet’s early work was influenced by plein air painting, introduced to him by Eugène Boudin, focusing on natural landscapes and scenes painted outdoors to capture the fleeting effects of light.

His breakthrough came with Impression, Sunrise (1873), a painting that gave the Impressionist movement its name. Monet’s technique involved loose, expressive brushstrokes and a vibrant palette that emphasized color over line.

He was fascinated by how light and weather changed the appearance of subjects, leading him to create series of paintings depicting the same scene at different times of day and in varying conditions, such as his famous series of haystacks, Rouen Cathedral, and the Houses of Parliament.

Monet’s later years were devoted to painting his water lily pond at Giverny, where he developed a style approaching abstraction, focusing on the interplay of light, water, and reflections. Despite his struggles with cataracts late in life, Monet’s dedication to capturing the transient qualities of nature made him a central figure in modern art, influencing generations of artists.

His monumental water lily series, installed at the Orangerie in Paris, remains a landmark achievement in Impressionism and 20th-century painting.