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Lot Essay
The present work is one of two views painted by Monet of the church in the small village of Bennecourt. In this sensitively rendered work, a solitary figure rests in the shadows of the cottages. Seen from the top of the rue de Limetz, the church dominates the landscape of the small town the rooftop of the ancient presbytery is visible. A study for this work is in the collection of the Musée Marmottan, Paris (inv. 51290), on which Monet inscribed, "midi a 1h extraordinaire de gris lumineux" in reference to the time of day he painted the work.
Monet's warm palette of colors dominated by varying shades of pink, brown and blue imbues the sleepy French town work with an atmospheric quality. His quest to depict a day in the life of a town or landscape through studying the effects of light would become an even stronger component in his later works.
The present painting was bought directly from Monet by Durand-Ruel & Cie. on behalf of Potter Palmer, a wealthy real-estate promoter and philanthropist from Chicago. The Palmers, voracious collectors of Impressionist and 19th century art, were eager to acquire Monet's paintings for their developing collection. A number of letters from 1892-1893 document a lengthy correspondence between Paul Durand-Ruel and Monet regarding the sale of no less than four paintings to Palmer. This period was a busy time for Monet, who was working on multiple canvases at his home in Giverny. He writes, "As soon as I receive my advance for the paintings, I can bring you the three or four canvases you requested in about eight days" (Monet to Paul Durand-Ruel, 12 December 1892, Archives Durand-Ruel).
Another well-known Monet painting once documented in the Palmer collection is Sur le quai de la Seine, Bennecourt of 1868 (Wildenstein 110) now in the collection of The Art Institute of Chicago.
Monet's warm palette of colors dominated by varying shades of pink, brown and blue imbues the sleepy French town work with an atmospheric quality. His quest to depict a day in the life of a town or landscape through studying the effects of light would become an even stronger component in his later works.
The present painting was bought directly from Monet by Durand-Ruel & Cie. on behalf of Potter Palmer, a wealthy real-estate promoter and philanthropist from Chicago. The Palmers, voracious collectors of Impressionist and 19th century art, were eager to acquire Monet's paintings for their developing collection. A number of letters from 1892-1893 document a lengthy correspondence between Paul Durand-Ruel and Monet regarding the sale of no less than four paintings to Palmer. This period was a busy time for Monet, who was working on multiple canvases at his home in Giverny. He writes, "As soon as I receive my advance for the paintings, I can bring you the three or four canvases you requested in about eight days" (Monet to Paul Durand-Ruel, 12 December 1892, Archives Durand-Ruel).
Another well-known Monet painting once documented in the Palmer collection is Sur le quai de la Seine, Bennecourt of 1868 (Wildenstein 110) now in the collection of The Art Institute of Chicago.