The Rouen Cathedral – (Claude Monet) Previous Next


Artist:

Style: Impressionism

Topic: Christianity France Religious Temples

Technique: Oil

The Rouen Cathedral series captures the façade of the cathedral at different times of the day and year, and reflects changes in its appearance under different lighting conditions. The Rouen Cathedral paintings, more than thirty in all, were made in 1892 and 1893, then reworked in Monet’s studio in 1894. Monet rented spaces across the street from the cathedral, where he set up temporary studios for the purpose. In 1895, he selected what he considered to be the twenty best paintings from the series for display at his Paris dealer’s gallery, and of these he sold eight before the exhibition was over. Pisarro and Cézanne visited the exhibition and praised the series highly. Historically, the series was well-timed. In the early 1890s, France was seeing a religious revival and the subject was well received. Apart from its religious significance, Rouen Cathedral–built in the Gothic style–represented all that was best in French history and culture, being a style of architecture that was admired and adopted by the rest of Europe during the Middle Ages.

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