A Garden as a Painting, and a Bridge in the Painting

If you catch a train from Paris’ Saint-Lazare station heading to Rouen, in just 40 minutes you’ll reach a small town in the heart of Normandy called Vernon. The double-decker train passes through beautiful and picturesque landscapes, and at first, you’re excited to take in the scenery. But soon you realize that, due to the train’s high speed, by the time you register what you’ve seen, you’re already five kilometers ahead. So, focus on the horizon—maybe you’ll remember something.

But no worries—just as you start to adjust to the rapidly shifting images, you arrive in Vernon. From there, it’s only three kilometers to the tiny village of Giverny. A bus awaits your train and will take you there in no time. Alternatively, you can walk or rent a bicycle, and you’ll enjoy the journey—especially if the day is pleasant.

With only fifty households, Giverny is known, like much of the surrounding region, for its apple orchards and the production of Calvados, a renowned apple brandy. However, its most famous attraction is the “Le Pressoir” farm, where Claude Monet (1840–1926) lived and created his floral paradise—today, the most visited garden in the world.

Monet’s Garden: The Living Masterpiece

At 43 years old, after earning his first substantial income from selling paintings, Monet purchased this estate, where he would spend the remaining 43 years of his life.

But fate often intertwines joy and sorrow—he forever remembered his move-in day, not just for the excitement of settling into his new home but also because it was the same day his close friend and fellow artist Édouard Manet passed away.

From the very beginning, Monet envisioned his estate as a living painting, the kind every artist dreams of creating once in a lifetime—a masterpiece that defines an entire artistic legacy.

Just as he never blended colors on the canvas, he never mixed them in his garden. His hues were always pure yellow or blue, never yellowish or bluish. He arranged flower varieties so that the garden quickly developed a distinctive atmosphere, resembling his painting palette.

Monet placed bold, vibrant flowers along the pathways and softened the background with delicate, pastel hues. This strategic layering of colors created a sense of depth and perspective, making the garden feel like an extension of his art.

Light played a crucial role in his compositions, both on canvas and in his garden. He deliberately planted blue flowers under tree canopies to enhance the effect of shadowy blues, much like he manipulated light in his paintings.

A Home Full of Life

Monet lived on the estate with his second wife, Alice (his first wife had passed away years earlier), his two children, and Alice’s six children from her previous marriage.

Their home had a large kitchen with a massive wooden table, serving as the center of daily life.

In Giverny, Monet was beloved and respected by all. He often said, “Everything is in good intentions, and therein lies the secret to life.” Perhaps this philosophy explains why his paintings radiate optimism and joy, filling viewers with positive energy.

Monet was always seen hurrying through his garden, his hands full of tools—some for painting, some for gardening. If he wasn’t painting or planting, he indulged his love for fine cuisine, gathering with family and friends over delicious meals and exquisite drinks.

In moments of good cheer, he often sang his favorite tune—the Toreador’s Aria from Bizet’s Carmen.

A Garden Divided into Two Worlds

The estate was divided into two sections.

• In the first, in front of the house, lay the flower garden, with the Grande Allée, a central pathway stretching through the heart of the blooms.
• At the end of this pathway stood a large gate, beyond which Monet fulfilled a lifelong dream—the creation of a water garden.

This dream was inspired by Japanese woodblock prints, which often depicted traditional Japanese gardens with ponds and bridges.

To bring this vision to life, Monet diverted water from a nearby stream, creating his own pond. He also built a bridge—but instead of painting it red, as in Japanese tradition, he chose green.

His love for water lilies led him to construct a dam to slow the water’s movement, allowing the lilies to thrive. To contrast their round shapes, he planted tall bamboo reeds at the pond’s edge.

In this way, the great master of Impressionism transformed his garden into a painting, making it his life’s work.

Monet’s Final Years: An Obsession with the Bridge

As a younger man, Monet would rise at dawn and stand in icy waters, waiting for the first sunlight to fall upon a sleeping field, capturing the fleeting moment of light.

He had the gift of seeing the unseen and bringing it to life on canvas. No wonder they called him “the eye”—but what an eye it was!

In his later years, Monet obsessively painted his bridge—again and again, at every time of day, from one day to the next.

Sometimes, he painted it with a single brushstroke, reducing it to a mere line. Later, art historians would claim that this marked the beginning of abstract painting. Indeed, Monet often danced on the edge of abstraction, as his subjects dissolved into a vortex of light and color.

Water Lilies: Monet’s Last Great Love

As rheumatism took hold, he could no longer venture into damp, cold places at dawn. Instead, he adapted to the civilized rhythm of his water lilies—which opened at 10:30 AM and closed at 5 PM.

While painting, he would extend his arm, holding the brush, but when painting his beloved lilies, he leaned so close to the canvas that his nose almost touched the surface.

Thus, his magnificent triptych of water lilies was born—a series so ethereal that one cannot tell if the lilies float on water or drift through the sky.

He dedicated his final six years to painting these masterpieces, which he ultimately gifted to the French nation—and to the world—as a bouquet of colors, light, and goodwill.

Monet’s Legacy Lives On

And do you remember the decorative coleus plants in your grandmother’s flower pots?

Monet adored them—growing them everywhere, both inside and outside his home.

To this day, they are carefully nurtured in Monet’s garden, because those who tend to his legacy know that his spirit still returns—to gently brush against them, as if in a whisper of gratitude.