Arte Documentary Traces the Slow Rediscovery of Monet's Nymphéas
On 11 October at 17:45, Arte will broadcast Anne-Cécile Genre's documentary "Monet et les Nymphéas, l'éternité retrouvée," which will also be available for streaming on arte.tv until 30 January 2027. This 52-minute film commemorates the 100th anniversary of Claude Monet's passing and explores the evolution of the Nymphéas series from initial misunderstanding to widespread acclaim, known as "Monet-mania." It starts at the 1889 Exposition universelle, where Monet (1840–1926) first encountered colored water lilies. After purchasing his Giverny home in 1890, he created nearly 300 paintings. In 1922, Monet gifted eight large works to France, leading to their installation at the Orangerie in 1927. Interest waned until modernists reignited it in the 1950s. A related exhibition will be held at the Musée de l'Orangerie from 30 September 2026 to 25 January 2027.
Key facts
- Documentary "Monet et les Nymphéas, l'éternité retrouvée" directed by Anne-Cécile Genre airs on Arte on 11 October at 17:45 and streams until 30 January 2027
- The 52-minute film marks the centenary of Claude Monet's death (1840–1926)
- Monet first saw colored water lilies at the 1889 Exposition universelle, a hybridized variety by nurseryman Latour-Marliac
- Monet produced nearly 300 Nymphéas canvases over roughly thirty years at Giverny
- Georges Clemenceau persuaded Monet to paint eight large compositions for a museum in the Tuileries garden
- The Orangerie installation opened in 1927, months after Monet's death, and its inauguration was likened to "a second burial"
- A shell pierced the Orangerie's glass roof at the Liberation, damaging two paintings
- The MoMA acquired two Nymphéas panels in the 1950s, destroyed in a 1958 fire; the Chichū Art Museum on Naoshima opened in the 1990s
Entities
Artists
- Claude Monet
- Anne-Cécile Genre
- Cyrille Sciamma
- Georges Clemenceau
- André Lhote
- Ellsworth Kelly
- Matsukata Kōjirō
- Latour-Marliac
Institutions
- Arte
- Beaux Arts Magazine
- Musée des Impressionnismes Giverny
- Musée de l'Orangerie
- MoMA
- Chichū Art Museum
- Bleu Kobalt
- Arte.tv
- Le Monde
Locations
- Giverny
- France
- Paris
- Trocadéro
- Tuileries
- Vexin
- New York
- United States
- Japan
- Naoshima