Lady with a Parasol

Classic Impressionism

The painting is classic impressionism. It is done outside with a simple motif and with a clear choice of color over line. This last is obvious in the depiction, as the gentle but visible brush strokes of Monet makes the color of those same brush strokes take precedence over the exact lines of the subject. Mrs Monet’s veil is blown by the wind, as is her billowing white dress; the waving grass of the meadow is echoed by the green underside of her parasol. She is seen as if from below, with a strong upward perspective, against fluffy white clouds in an azure sky. A boy, the Monets’ seven-year-old son, is placed further away, concealed behind a rise in the ground and visible only from the waist up, creating a sense of depth. The brush strokes of Monet in this painting are in fact in some areas larger and more visible than in most other paintings he did. This is especially so in the depiction of the sky and clouds.

The work is a genre painting of an everyday family scene, not a formal portrait. The work was painted outdoors, en plein air, and quickly, probably in a single period of a few hours