Monet and London. Views of the Thames

27 Sep-19 Jan 2024

Overview

Claude Monet (1840-1926) is world renowned as the leading figure of French Impressionism, the movement that changed the course of modern art. Less known is the fact that some of Monet’s most remarkable Impressionist paintings were made not in France but in London. They depict extraordinary views of the Thames as it had never been seen before, full of evocative atmosphere, mysterious light and radiant colour.

Begun over three stays in the capital between 1899 and 1901, the series—depicting Charing Cross Bridge, Waterloo Bridge and the Houses of Parliament—was unveiled at a landmark exhibition in Paris in 1904. Monet fervently wanted to show them in London itself the following year, 1905, but plans fell through. To this day, they have never been the subject of an exhibition in the UK.

The Griffin Catalyst Exhibition: Monet and London. Views of the Thames will realise Monet’s unfulfilled ambition of showing this extraordinary group of paintings in London, on the banks of the Thames and a mere 300 metres from the Savoy Hotel where most were painted. By presenting the paintings Monet himself selected for his public in Paris and London, it will provide visitors with the unique experience of seeing the show Monet curated and the works he felt best represented his ambitious artistic enterprise – brought together for the first time 120 years after their inaugural exhibition.