Monet, my love of

This is Claude Monet, the famous impressionist painter.

Welcome to my obsession, Internet.

This is one of several paintings Monet did of the Rouen Cathedral, this one is called La Cathedrale de Rouen, le portail, temps gris (or Rouen Cathedral, Portal, Overcast Weather -- not very original, I know).

This is one of his 'prettier' paintings. It's called Le Jardin de Monet, les iris (or The Artist's Garden, Irises), 1900. It lives in Paris at the Musee d'Orsay . It isn't one of my favourite, but it's pretty. For as long as I'd been planning my trip to London and Paris, I'd planned to go to Giverny to The Garden. His Garden. And I made it (because I am nothing, if not a planner). See, here I am. IN. MONET'S. GARDEN. (Yippee! I was almost as giddy as a school girl who finds herself in the bedroom of an aging rockstar, only I didn't do anything dirty).

Thinking about it now I wish I'd swiped a flower, but of course I didn't because I am afraid of the French police (well, most police really. But I was afraid the French ones would have the guns like the soldiers...). Anyway, I needed to see Monet's house. I needed to see what he saw and what he painted because he is my favourite painter. Of. All. Time. Sure Picasso and Renoir and Degas are good too, but when I look at a Monet I feel a sense of calm (weird, I know. Sad even...?).

I felt that way in his garden too. Seeing the flowers, the lily pads and the Japanese bridge (look, it's me on the Japanese bridge! You can NOT go to Monet's house and garden and NOT have a picture taken of yourself on the bridge).


Below: his house. (I was in his bedroom and his massive kitchen) It was really very lovely and full of Japanese art because that's what he liked.
More pretty garden.




I thought I was obsessed.
This town of Giverny loves its Monet. Apparently after he set up shop there a bunch of American painters who really liked him -- groupies or mentees to his mentor -- decided to live there too in these quaint little stone cottages that are still there on the narrow French country road (or at least that's how I'm telling it...). It is very beautiful, peaceful and French.

At the end of His street there is this at the Giverny church.

Don't worry. No need to click on it. I took a close up, which now seems like I took my obsession a tad too far.