cover image Claude Monet 1840-1926

Claude Monet 1840-1926

Essays by Joseph Baillo, Laurence Bertrand-Dorléac, John House, Laurence Madeline, Anne Roquebert, and Richard Thompson, Abrams, $65 (384p) ISBN 978-0-8109-9709-7

"What would be the point of a retrospective if it were not an invitation to take a fresh look?" asks Guy Cogeval, president of Paris's Orsay and Orangerie museums in this thematically organized and splendidly illustrated catalogue of the first major Monet retrospective in 15 years (currently on exhibit in Paris). The catalogue provides inventive, insightful perspectives on the artist's work and life by noted art historians and Orsay curators. House argues, for instance, that Monet's emphasis on his "uniquely personal, subjective sensation" unified his diverse subject matter. A fascinating essay links Monet's last works with Oswald Spengler's The Decline of the West; another is an incisive study of "reproduction" and "oeuvre" in the works of Monet and Roy Lichtenstein. And there is a beautifully illustrated exploration of the origin and development of his "series" process. This visually stunning and analytically innovative collection ends with a thoughtful photo essay on Monet "the man," by art critic Philippe Piguet, who is a direct descendant of the artist. 300 color illus. (Oct.)