Monet: The Late Years: Catch it at The DeYoung, SF through May 27th.
With May’s arrival and this now, closing-way-too-soon exhibit at the DeYoung, I’ve got a bit of France, and Garden Fever on my brain.
When the exhibit first opened in February, I raced over. Playing hooky on a weekday, I felt privileged at the immersiveness of the experience and the time and space I could take there sitting, writing and sketching with few people around. It shed light onto Monet’s late in life accomplishments.
I have seen some of this later work at the amazing, and very lightly visited, Musee Marmatton Monet in Paris. But seeing more of this period in one place educated me on how he was able to pivot and grow when he began to have eye site problems. We learn that he memorized the placement of paints on his palette, and see the transition and evolution of his beloved subjects.
The result? To me, a re-imagining and movement more purely into modernism. Awesome, inspiring and so very beautiful.
That first day, and return visits, I’ve coupled with an afterglow coffee in the sculpture garden, and a meandering stroll at the adjacent japanese tea or botanical garden in Golden Gate Park. A true double/double or triple/triple infusion.
If you’re lucky enough to catch this show before it closes, give yourself time to enjoy its fifty or so pieces. Many are from private collections that are unlikely to travel together any time soon. If a San Francisco visit is not in your immediate future, The Marmatton Monet may just be calling...or added, to that next...or first Paris experience.
Happy May everyone, Lisa
Monet: The Late Years: is at The DeYoung, SF through May 27th.