Monet's Influence on American Abstract Painters Explored at Paris Exhibition

The Musée de l'Orangerie in Paris presents 'The Water Lilies: American Abstract Painting and the last Monet', an exhibition examining Claude Monet's impact on American abstract artists. Curated by Cécile Debray, the show features 30 works by Monet and American painters including Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollock, and Barnett Newman. It runs until August 20, 2018. The exhibition highlights how after World War II, many American artists made pilgrimages to Monet's home in Giverny. A turning point was in 1955 when MoMA director Alfred Barr initiated large-scale acquisitions of Monet's works, influencing other museums like the Nelson-Atkins in Cleveland and the Minneapolis Institute of Art. The show includes loans from the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Musée d'Orsay.