Did you know one artist changed how people saw light and color? Claude Monet did. He painted sunlight, wind, and reflections so pictures felt alive. That bold way of painting surprised everyone.
Claude Monet (1840-1926) was a French painter in the late 1800s and early 1900s. He helped start Impressionism - a new way to paint quick moments of light and color instead of tiny details.
Today we’ll focus on his water-lily paintings and his habit of painting outdoors in his garden at Giverny. He painted the same pond again and again to capture morning, noon, and evening light.
Monet used loose brushstrokes and bright colors to show how light moves across water and flowers. At first people thought his paintings were messy, but his ideas changed modern art. His huge water-lily panels now hang in famous museums and still inspire artists.
Monet’s big gift was teaching us to look closely at light and to paint what we feel, not just what we see. Try a tiny Monet experiment: paint a patch of sunlight with quick dabs of color.
Monet shows that art can be playful and brave. Even kids can be Monet for a day: go outside, notice the light, and have fun with bright colors.
