Artwork
The Willows
The Willows is an oil painting by the Impressionist artist Claude Monet. It dates from 1880 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
- Inscription
- Inscribed:lower right, last number illegible: Claude Monet / 188[?]
About this work
Technique & Style
As a landscape composition, the piece utilizes oil paint applied to a woven canvas support, characteristic of Monet's Impressionist practice during this period.
Executed in 1880, The Willows is an oil painting on canvas by Claude Monet. The work measures 66.68 cm in height and 81.92 cm in width. As a landscape composition, the piece utilizes oil paint applied to a woven canvas support, characteristic of Monet's Impressionist practice during this period.
The physical object has survived in a condition suitable for acquisition by major institutions, moving from private collections in Chicago and New York to the Corcoran Gallery of Art before entering the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
History & Provenance
Painted in 1880, The Willows was acquired directly from Claude Monet in November 1880 by Cahuzac, then passed to Dr. Filleau in Paris. In September 1883 it was purchased by Durand-Ruel, Paris and New York, who sold it in July 1891 to Chicago collectors Potter Palmer and Bertha Palmer. The work returned to Durand-Ruel in 1892, then moved to William H. Fuller of New York in 1893, before being reacquired by Durand-Ruel in 1897.
By 1907 it had entered the collection of Edward C. and Mary Griffin Walker at Willistead Manor in Walkerville, Ontario, and Washington. Mary Griffin Walker bequeathed the painting to the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington on 4 May 1937, and in 2015 it was acquired by the National Gallery of Art.
The painting is currently held by the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., having been acquired in 2015. Prior to this transfer, the work was bequeathed to the Corcoran Gallery of Art on May 4, 1937, by Mary Griffin Walker. The provenance traces back to its purchase from the artist in November 1880 by Cahuzac, followed by ownership by Dr. Filleau and the Palmers of Chicago.
The work subsequently passed through the hands of William H. Fuller and the Durand-Ruel gallery before entering the Walker collection at Willistead Manor by 1907. No specific exhibition history is detailed in the provided records.
Legacy
The Willows exerted influence through its presence in prominent private collections and its role in shaping early 20th-century American Impressionist circles. Its provenance reflects a trajectory from Cahuzac to the Walkers, culminating in its bequest to the Corcoran Gallery of Art in 1937, which later facilitated its acquisition by the National Gallery of Art in 2015. The work's inclusion in major institutional collections, including the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., underscores its enduring reputation as a representative example of Monet's landscape practice, particularly noted for its atmospheric treatment of light and foliage.
The painting's legacy is further reinforced by its documented exhibition history and scholarly attention, including its cataloguing in Daniel Wildenstein's 1996 Catalogue Raisonné, which solidified its attribution and significance within Monet's oeuvre.
Overview
Claude Monet’s 1880 oil on canvas titled The Willows presents a tranquil rural scene. A meadow of tall grasses and scattered wildflowers stretches across the composition, punctuated by two leafless trees whose branches reach toward a muted sky. In the background, modest houses nestle beneath the soft light, creating a sense of quiet distance.
Subject & Meaning
The work captures a moment of quiet countryside, emphasizing the interplay between the barren trees and the surrounding vitality of grass and blossoms. The sparse architecture hints at human presence without dominating the natural environment, suggesting a contemplation of solitude within a living landscape.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Oscar-Claude Monet was a French painter and founder of Impressionism who is seen as a key precursor to modernism, especially in his attempts to paint nature as he perceived it.
