Amazon.co.uk Review
After the scores of beautiful Monet books that have been published over the last two decades, it is hard to imagine that a new one could be indispensable. But this volume, the catalogue of an exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts in London is more than just lovely. The main essay, by Paul Hayes Tucker, is a spellbinding history that ably places Monet and his late works in the context of the shattering political upheavals of his time.
Tucker demonstrates the patriotic ideal of La France, which for Monet and his public was the ur-subject of his entire oeuvre up to the end of the 19th century, from the crashing waves at Étretat to the shimmering facades of Chartres. Then came the Dreyfus affair, with the Catholic Church and French conservatives united in an anti-Semitic attack against the innocent Jewish army captain accused of treason. Monet passionately and actively joined the writer Émile Zola, who was arrested for defending Dreyfus in his famous article, "J'Accuse."
Tucker traces the rift in Monet's use of imagery from this time forward, as he turns his back on quintessentially French scenes to focus instead on the closely observed gardens in his own back yard. Tucker also subtly evokes Monet's despair during the long years of World War I, and his often heroic efforts to be of use, despite his age. This sumptuous volume, with its 12 fold-out plates of the Waterlilies, is very, very beautiful, but its story of an aging artist deeply engaged in his art and his times is something even better. --Peggy Moorman
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Synopsis
An illustrated examination of Monet's work between 1900 and 1926, which sets the paintings in a personal as well as an historical context. The authors also assess the artists public persona and his personal and professional strategies. The text is designed to accompany an exhibition at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts in September 1998.
