Argenteuil, summer 1875. The wind blows across the hillside. Camille turns, parasol in hand. Her son Jean stands behind her, almost swallowed by the tall grass. Monet captures everything — in a single session.
A light you can almost feel
Look at Camille’s dress: touches of pale blue, grey and yellow vibrate together. The broad white strokes on her skirt catch the light like a flash of sun. A veil floats across her face — a few brushstrokes are enough. The grass is dense, streaked with green, brown and blue. Bursts of yellow suggest buttercups. Monet paints quickly, freely. Some areas of canvas are left bare. The sky is brushed in, the clouds jostled. The vertical composition places Camille at the very heart of the painting, a monumental silhouette against the blue.
Impressionism in full stride
In 1875, Impressionism was still an affront in the eyes of the official Salon. Monet painted outdoors, chasing the fleeting instant rather than the frozen pose. This canvas embodies his whole programme: capturing natural light, atmospheric effects, the movement of the wind through skirts and clouds. Camille Doncieux, his companion, and Jean, their seven-year-old son, were his most frequent models. The work is not a portrait in any academic sense — it is a sensation. A suspended walk. An afternoon that never ends.
Claude Monet
Born in Paris, Claude Monet (1840–1926) became the leading figure of Impressionism. Obsessed with shifting light, he painted in series, outdoors, in all weathers. Woman with a Parasol distils the essence of his approach: colour, movement, the truth of a glance.
A question for you
💭 Camille has no clearly defined face — just a few strokes, a veil, a silhouette. Is this still a portrait, or is Monet inventing something else entirely?
About this work
- Woman with a Parasol — Madame Monet and Her Son
- Claude Monet
- 1875
- Oil on canvas
- 100 × 81 cm
- National Gallery of Art, Washington
- https://www.nga.gov/artworks/61379-woman-parasol-madame-monet-and-her-son
