The Field of Poppies

CLAUDE MONET (1840—1926) The Field of Poppies. 1873, canvas, oil, 50×65
This painting is one of Monet’s most famous works, extremely popular, a kind of “classic” piece of French Impressionism. Painted at a time when many problems of plein air painting were successfully solved by Monet and his friends, this painting fully demonstrates the artistic effect of the Impressionist method and painting technique. Confidently, freely, and easily applied paints on the canvas—soft spots that float like clouds across the bright blue sky, strokes of dull green crowns on the horizon, bright dots of red poppies scattered in the tall grass… Not bound by drawing, simple and at the same time finely organized, the composition of colors creates a poetic feeling of the pictorial beauty of the barely vibrating summer air, blooming grasses—not bright, yet full of charm and allure of the central French nature. The painting was created in Argenteuil—a small provincial town on the banks of the Seine, where Monet settled in 1872 thanks to financial assistance from Édouard Manet. Here, en plein air, Monet gladly worked together with Manet and Renoir.