Giverny () is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the northern French department of

Eure Eure () is a department in Normandy in Northwestern France, named after the river Eure. Its prefecture is Évreux. In 2019, Eure had a population of 599,507.Commune de Giverny (27285)
INSEE The village is located on the "right bank" of the river

Seine ) , mouth_location = Le Havre/ Honfleur , mouth_coordinates = , mouth_elevation = , progression = , river_system = Seine basin , basin_size = , tributaries_left = Yonne, Loing, Eure, Risle , tributa ...

at its confluence with the river

Epte The Epte () is a river in Seine-Maritime and Eure, in Normandy, France. It is a right tributary of the Seine, long. The river rises in Seine-Maritime in the Pays de Bray, near Forges-les-Eaux. The river empties into the Seine not far from Give ...

. It lies west-northwest of

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

, in the region of

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

. It is best known as the location of

Claude Monet Oscar-Claude Monet (, , ; 14 November 1840 – 5 December 1926) was a French painter and founder of impressionist painting who is seen as a key precursor to modernism, especially in his attempts to paint nature as he perceived it. During ...

's garden and home. Several American Impressionist artists also settled in Giverny, drawn by the landscapes, the overall atmosphere, and the presence of Monet. Other attractions include the Museum of Impressionism Giverny, dedicated to the history of impressionism and the Giverny art colony, and the Hôtel Baudy, which was the center of artistic life in Giverny's heyday. It is now a café and restaurant, with period decoration.

History

A settlement has existed in Giverny since

neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several pa ...

times and a monument uncovered attests to this fact. Archeological finds have included

bootee A bootee (also bootie or booty) is a short soft sock or bootlike garment used for warmth or protection. Bootees for babies are usually thick and knitted, to keep the baby's feet warm. Dog booties for dogs such as sledge dogs in very cold Arctic ...

s dating from

Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, language, morals and way of life in a uniquely Gaulish context ...

times and to the earlier 1st and 2nd centuries AD. The town was known in ancient deeds as "Warnacum". The cultivation of

grapes A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years ago, ...

has been an occupation of the inhabitants of Giverny since

Merovingian The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the Franks and northern Gaul ...

times. The village church dates from the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

and is built partially in the Romanesque style, though additions have since been made. It is dedicated to Sainte-Radegonde. The village has remained a small rural setting with a modest population (numbering around 301 in 1883 when Monet discovered it) and has since seen a boom in tourism since the restoration of Monet's house and gardens. Monet's house in Giverny

Monet at Giverny

Claude Monet noticed the village of Giverny while looking out of a train window. He made up his mind to move there and rented a house and the area surrounding it. In 1890 he had enough money to buy the house and land outright and set out to create the magnificent gardens he wanted to paint. Some of his most famous paintings were of his garden in Giverny, famous for its rectangular ''Clos Normand'', with archways of climbing plants entwined around colored shrubs, and the water garden, formed by a tributary to the

, with the Japanese bridge, the pond with the

water lilies ''Water Lilies'' (or ''Nymphéas'', ) is a series of approximately 250 oil paintings by French Impressionist Claude Monet (1840–1926). The paintings depict his flower garden at his home in Giverny, and were the main focus of his artisti ...

, the wisterias and the azaleas.

The Giverny Colony

Beginning around 1887, several American Impressionist artists settled to work in Giverny, drawn by the landscapes, the overall atmosphere, and the presence of Monet. These included

Willard Metcalf Willard Leroy Metcalf (July 1, 1858March 9, 1925) was an American painter born in Lowell, Massachusetts. He studied at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and later attended Académie Julian, Paris. After early figure-painting and il ...

, Louis Ritman, Theodore Wendel, and

John Leslie Breck John Leslie Breck (1860–1899) was an American artist who died at the age of 39. During his short life he painted a number of notable works, and is credited with introducing Impressionism to the United States with a show in Boston in 1890. He d ...

. Soon many American extended their visits from summer through the entire year. American painter Theodore Earl Butler married Monet's stepdaughter and sometime-model

Suzanne Hoschedé Suzanne Hoschedé (April 29, 1868–February 6, 1899) was the eldest daughter of Alice Hoschedé and Ernest Hoschedé, the stepdaughter and favorite model of French impressionist painter Claude Monet, and wife of American impressionist painter Th ...

there in 1892.

Frederick Carl Frieseke Frederick Carl Frieseke (April 7, 1874 – August 24, 1939) was an American Impressionist painter who spent most of his life as an expatriate in France. An influential member of the Giverny art colony, his paintings often concentrated on various ...

spent every summer from 1906 through 1919 in a residence next door to Monet's. The term Decorative Impressionism was coined in 1911 to describe Frieseke's work, and the term describes the work of a "second wave" of American painters in Giverny such as

Richard E. Miller Richard E. Miller (March 22, 1875 – January 23, 1943) was an American Impressionism, American Impressionist painter and a member of the Giverny Colony of American Impressionists. Miller was primarily a figurative painter, known for his painti ...

. In December 1910, six of the Giverny artists (Frieseke, Miller, Lawton S. Parker, Guy Rose,

Edmund Greacen Edmund William Greacen (1876–1949) was an American Impressionist painter. His active career extended from 1905 to 1935, during which he created many colorful works in oil on canvas and board. One of his works, a reproduction of which is at the ...

and Karl Anderson) were given a show at the Madison Gallery in New York which termed them "The Giverny Group." The

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

largely marked the end of the art colony.

Attractions

Claude Monet's property at Giverny (house and gardens), left by his son to the Académie des Beaux-Arts in 1966, became a Museum opened to public visit in 1980 after completion of large-scale restoration work: the huge Nymphea's studio was restored and the precious collection of Japanese woodblock prints was displayed in several rooms, hung in the manner chosen by the master himself; the gardens were replanted as they once were. The house became a popular tourist attraction (the Claude Monet Foundation), particularly in the summer when the flowers are in bloom. The other main attraction of the village is the Museum of Impressionism Giverny, dedicated to the history of impressionism and its continuation in the Giverny art colony and along the valley of the River Seine. The Hôtel Baudy was a center of artistic life in the Giverny heyday. It is now still a café and restaurant, with period decoration.

References

Bibliography

* Katherine M. Bourguignon (ed), ''Impressionist Giverny. A Colony of Artists, 1885-1915'' (Giverny: Terra Foundation for American Art, 2007).

External links

Giverny

Giverny
{{authority control Communes of Eure Gardens in Eure Houses in France Landscape design history Museums in Eure