Monet painted a number of painting series, illustrating the effects of different lighting conditions on a subject. Among the most famous of these are the paintings of The house of Parliament in London and the paintings of Rouen Cathedral. However, before Claude Monet painted such permanent motives, he also did series characterized by a more open air feel. Among the first, we find Poplars, which was painted by Monet in the summer and fall of 1891.
The paintings depict a single file of Poplar trees standing on the edge of the Epte river, near the artists house in Giverny. The river forms an s-curve at this point, thus allowing the Poplars to dominate both the foreground and background of the painting. The paintings were done on a flooding studio that Monet had moored off the bank of the river, and to which he commuted by a small boat. However, before he had finished painting the series, the trees were offered for sale on auction by the commune of Limetz, on whose ground they rested. This led to Monet himself having to buy the trees in order to finish the paintings. He afterwards sold them to a lumber merchant. Maybe this experience was part of the reason why Monet picked more established subjects like a cathedral and a house of parliament for later series?
The Poplar series is among the earliest by Monet, and shows the Artists in his favorite outdoor element, depicting the effects of light on the French countryside. Today, the paintings can be found at leading art museums across the world, including in Philadelphia, Tokyo and Edinburgh.
