'Monet's Garden' at the NGV: From France to Australia

'Monet's Garden' at the NGV: From France to Australia

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Posted 2013-05-06 by Carole Kellyfollow

Fri 10 May 2013 - Sun 08 Sep 2013





The upcoming exhibition of Monet's masterpieces at the National Gallery of Victoria (May to Sept), prompted my memories of visiting his fabulous gardens in Giverny, Northern France. Many of his paintings reflect his gardens and the village where he lived, so when you stand in front of his works on display, it's as if you were actually looking out from the window of his home. By sharing the experience, I hope I add to your enjoyment when you visit his exhibition in Melbourne, for his is a talent not to be missed.





Giverny is a small delightful village about 75kms from Paris and it is here in 1883 that the Father of Impressionism started his lifelong obsession with his gardens and remained there until his death in 1926. When you visit, you understand the obsession.





From the upstairs window of his home, your gaze sweeps across an extensive array of blooms: of roses, agapanthas, irises, tulips and poppies of every conceivable colour. It is vivid and breathtakingly beautiful. Standing there, you realise that this is the very spot at which he sat when painting many of the works you will see as part of his collection. Some works from his Japanese collection adorn the walls of his house and with the typical rustic furniture of his day.





As impressive as the sight is from the window of his home, it is when you wander along the willow lined paths to the pond and watch the lily gathers at work, that you begin to see why he chose such exquisite scenes for his paintings. Peace, colour and near-perfection abound. As a visitor, you are free to wander all around the gardens and along the paths, travelling at your own pace. On a hot day, sitting quietly on a bench by the side of the pond under the shade of the weeping willows, one could muse for hours.





Watching the lilies being cleaned and the pond being maintained by hand was fascinating. Several small boats had rowed to the lilly clumps and their occupant was standing, balancing adroitly in the boat and using a large net scoop to clean up around the plants. What an occupation to have! I cannot imagine the workload involved in maintaining the gardens in their entirety.





In every direction you look, there is sufficient beauty to make you gasp. As you pass by the wisteria covered bowers and the magnificent red and gold foliage of the myriad of trees, you eventually arrive at the scene of one of the most recognisable of Monet's masterpieces, The Japanese Bridge. I figure that it was equivalent to how Alice must have felt when she fell down the rabbit hole! It's a surreal experience.





As always, after hours of being engrossed, it's time to replenish the system, so off to the nearby eatery you go. There wasn't an abundance of eateries, but what there was was good. Even away from the Gradens, the air of being somewhere out of the ordinary, quaint and special still clung.





This current exhibition includes 50 masterpieces from the Musée Marmottan Monet, as well as others from leading international museums and private collections. You'll have the opportunity to understand this master better through portraits (by Renoir) and family photographs. It is truly a golden opportunity to view the works of a master of his craft. Whether you are "in to art" or not, it is an opportunity not to be missed.



10th May - 8th Sept 2013

Cost Ad: $26 Conc: $22.50 Ch: $10 Fam: $50

NGV
180 St Kilda Rd
Melbourne

PH; 8620 2222

www.ngv.vic.gov.au

Open 10am-5pm. Closed Tuesdays





#things_to_see
#city
#learn_something
#history
#gardens
#galleries
#exhibitions
#may
#cbd
#attractions
#art
#august
#june
#july
!date 10/05/2013 -- 08/09/2013
%wnmelbourne
206678 - 2023-06-16 05:52:20

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