Homework Help: Art: Artists: Monet

The French Impression Artist, Monet's, painting 'Antibes Seen from La Salis'.

It was painted in 1888 while Monet was spending the first few months of the year on the French Riviera on the Mediterranean Coast. It is freely painted onto canvas, with a brilliant use of delicate oil paints. It is difficult to find the exact size of this painting, however, I am able to make a reasonable estimation. Because Monet lived from 1840-1926, he was living at the time of the invention of tube paints in about 1860. This meant that Monet could paint outdoors, and because of this, he would have had to have had a small, portable canvas, perhaps one meter by seventy-five centimeters.

'Antibes Seen from La Salis' depicts the French town of Antibes, which is situated on the French Riviera. It is popular because of its extremely mild weather, and renowned for its perfume and fishing industries. In the painting, Antibes is shown in the background, viewed from across an arm of the Mediterranean. In the foreground (in front of the water,) the foliage of some green and gold native vegetation is blowing in the wind. Deep back, behind the town, a series of gray and blue mountains rise, and further back again lies the sky.

The subject of this painting is Antibes, a large town on the Riviera in the south of France. The weather there is hot and dry, while the winters and mild with some rainfall. North winds called 'mistrals' sometimes blow over the Mediterranean region and one of these is depicted in 'Antibes seen from La Salis.' Much of the vegetation seen around this sub-tropical area include pomegranates, prickly pears, dates, palms and olives; however none of these are seen in the painting.

'Antibes Seen from La Salis' is not the only painting of this subject, in fact Monet painted many pictures of Antibes and its surroundings e.g. 'Antibes seen from the Cape'. But, although there a several paintings, no group emerges as a true 'series'.

Monet painted many paintings of the same subject because he was interested in the changing of light, atmosphere, and weather patterns. He sometimes waited for the duration of a year so that he could paint the same picture in many different seasons. Monet often stood at his canvas(es) continually changing his palette and position so that he could keep up with the fast pace of the sun. Monet definitely started a new style and method of painting with his series, the Poplars, Haystacks and Cathedrals.

Monet may have selected this area for painting, because of the Mistral that was blowing through at the time. This type of unstable weather is imitated very well by the delicate brush work in the foliage; and the painter has also captured the sunlight on the leaves of the trees, as well as on parts of the water. Monet was very interested in water and reflection, so many of his works include these features. This scene is also a very interesting one, as it includes five very different and distinct areas: the sky, the mountains, Antibes (the city), the water, and the leaves on a tree.

Close to the back of the painting, the colors are mixed smoothly to create a still and quiet atmosphere. This also builds up the effect of distance in the scene. Towards the front, the paints are applied increasingly thickly, and with a more jagged feel. This type of brush work gives the exact impression of the Mistral.

The back of the painting looks silent - the city is not stirring, and neither are the mountains. The moods in the water and sky are also still, but the atmosphere changes in the foreground. Closer to the front, the painting almost feels alive, because of the Mistral blowing across the leaves. The cool colors of the background also help to create the serene effect, while the warm colors in the foliage add to the vibrancy.

The brush strokes are extremely visible (as is Monet's style) in the foreground, although further back, in the tranquil section, they are less so. His brush stokes are very fitting, I feel, and create the atmosphere of the wind exactly. He has used separate brush strokes for each color in the tree section, but mixed tones at the back. Monet's brush style does not use the paint in one direction: if this painting is studied closely, there is evidence of vertical and horizontal lines.

I feel that 'Antibes seen from La Salis' shows a time of change, with the Mistral etc. 1888 was also a time of great change for Monet, because by this time, he was beginning to become renowned as a painter. In June of that year, Monet sold ten of his canvases to Theo van Gogh, who then showed them in an exhibition. Morisot wrote in a letter to Monet just after this event, 'You have really won over the public....The people one sees at Goupil's are full of admiration.' I think that Monet showed his excitement at his rising popularity through this painting.

Monet's painting is very beautiful. 'Antibes seen from La Salis' uses colors that complement each other incredibly well, and this is one the the main reasons for which I chose to research it. I have enjoyed looking at his other works, also, especially the ones which show other angles of Antibes. I also thought that the caricatures of teachers which Monet had drawn in childhood were quite amusing.

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