Since the late 1880s. Monet begins to write a whole series of paintings on the same motif, trying to capture the nuances of lighting, depending on the time of day and the weather. The essence of his method is as follows: the artist began to write one type simultaneously on several canvases, and on each tried to convey the state of nature in a strictly specific, rather short period of time, working on one canvas, sometimes no more than half an hour. In the following days he continued to write methodically in the same sequence until all the canvases were finished.
The first series of paintings, written in accordance with the new method of Monet, were “Rick”, which had a great success with the public. In the summer and autumn of 1891, Monet worked on another cycle consisting of twenty canvases. This time, the artist’s attention was attracted by poplars growing along the left bank of the river Epte, which flowed near his estate, at the edge of the swamp. For the convenience of observation, the artist purchased a small island “Krapivny”, located opposite the coast with poplars, and spent all his time here.
Inspired by the success of Stogov, Durand-Ruel soon presented fifteen paintings from the Topol series to the public. He bought seven of them himself at the price of 4000 francs each. “I am very pleased with your news from the exhibition, – writes Monet in a letter to Durand-Ruel. However, there are reviews from various sides that the pictures produced an effect.”
(2 votes, average: 4.50 out of 5)