Avant les nymphéas. Monet découvre Giverny, 1883-1890

Exhibition at the Musée des Impressionnismes, Giverny, 27 March – 5 July 2026

Long before he created his famous Water Lilies, Claude Monet (1840–1926) discovered the village of Giverny in 1883, whose landscapes, light and surrounding nature were to profoundly transform his painting.

This exhibition catalogue looks back at those decisive years when Monet settled there, observed his surroundings and gradually shaped the garden that would become one of the most iconic motifs in the history of art. Through a selection of major works, archival material and essays by specialists, it traces the emergence of a new perspective on landscape and nature, a prelude to the vast cycle of the Water Lilies.