Claude Monet’s House
Visiting the home of Claude Monet in Giverny was an important experience of our trip to France with our daughters. For anyone who has seen Monet’s painting over the years, traveling to Giverny feels like stepping directly into his artwork. It was a journey we especially wanted to share as a family because his paintings had already become familiar to us long before we ever arrived there.
We took the early morning train so we could arrive before the large crowds. Being among the first visitors allowed us to enjoy the gardens and pathways in relative quiet before the buses full of tourists began arriving shortly afterward. We quickly made our way toward the famous Japanese bridge over the water garden so we could capture a photograph before the area filled with people. Only afterward did we circle back and take out time exploring Monet’s home.
Monet moved to Giverny in 1883 and spent more than forty years there developing both his home and gardens into a living work of art. The gardens were intentionally designed with color, perspective and changing blooms in mind, almost like an artist composing a canvas outdoors.
Monet’s home revealed a bright dining room, colorful kitchen, Japanese prints and intimate rooms that gave us a sense of his daily life behind his famous paintings. There was something special about walking the same paths Monet walked while surrounded by the landscape that inspired some of the most beloved paintings.
Today, Fondation Claude Monet remains one of the most visited artistic and cultural sites in France, preserving both the home and gardens that helped define the Water Lilies and the larger Impressionist movement itself.
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