Claude Monet · three homonymous works · 1875 -1885
Cover image is Frost, sun effect, painted in Vétheuil in 1880 and kept at the Musée d'Orsay under number RF 2706. The frosty ground, bushes and pond blend into a pale, blue and pink light.
Pay attention to the title: Monet painted several works called Frost. The reproduction offered by the store corresponds to W363, a garden in Argenteuil painted in 1875 and kept at the Museum Barberini, and not to the canvas of Orsay W555 analyzed on the cover.
Reading guide
The guide begins by precisely identifying the canvas of Orsay, then distinguishes the other two Frost of Monet before analyzing the color, touch and winter landscapes.
Quick response
What Frost do we see it on the cover?
It's about Frost, sun effect, signed and dated 1880. The Musée d'Orsay locates this landscape in Vétheuil and describes it by its elements: pond, bushes, boat, poplars, winter and frost.
W555: the Musée d'Orsay version
This 60.5 × 99.5 cm oil on canvas bears the number RF 2706 and the number 555 of the Wildenstein catalog. It should not be confused with W363, painted in Argenteuil in 1875, nor with W963, painted in Giverny in 1885.
- Artist
- Claude Monet
- Full title
- Frost, sun effect
- Place and date
- Vétheuil, 1880
- Collection
- Musée d'Orsay, RF 2706
Vétheuil · 1880
A work exhibited then acquired by Gustave Caillebotte
Monet moved to Vétheuil in 1878. The painting was shown in 1880 during his first personal exhibition at the gallery of Modern life, where Caillebotte probably acquires it directly from him.
What the Orsay notice allows us to affirm
The location, date, format, signature, inventory and provenance are documented. On the other hand, reducing the foreground to a "frozen Seine" went further than the notice: the work is therefore described here as a frosty landscape of Vétheuil.
1880
The painting is signed and dated "1880 Claude Monet".
Modern life
It appears under number 7 of the Monet exhibition of 1880.
Quailbotte
It remained in his collection until 1894.
Musée d'Orsay
The legacy was accepted by the state in 1896; the work is today RF 2706.
Composition of W555
The cold can be read in the touch, not in uniform white
Monet contrasts the bushes in the foreground, the horizontal bands of the pond and the distant poplars. A dark boat anchors the bottom of the composition. The pink and yellow shades illuminate this cold atmosphere and give meaning to the subtitle sun effect.
The foreground
Short touches of blue-green and cream make you feel moisture, frost and irregularities in the soil.
The trees
Distant poplars set fine vertical accents above the bushes; they punctuate the horizontal format.
The pond
The clear bands of water open the composition between bushes and distant vegetation; their horizontal touches contrast with the trees.
The color
Blues, pinks, muted greens and pale yellows replace the simple opposition between white and black.
The touch
Visible and changing, it differentiates soil, bushes, trees and water without isolating them.
White in colors
Why the white landscape is never truly white
In Monet, pure white is rare. A light surface receives colors from the sky, the shore, water and shadows. Frost is therefore a colored material.
The cold light
Grays give the impression of humid, low air.
Shadow in frost
Blue cools the shadow areas of the soil without blackening them.
The land and vegetation
Earth tones connect the ground, vegetation and the boat.
Monet and winter
From luminous snow to landscapes caught by the cold
Frost, sun effect understands it better when compared to Monet's other winters: Argenteuil, Honfleur, Vétheuil and Lavacourt.
La Pie: luminous white
In The Magpie, the snow shines. In Frost, white is heavier, wetter, quieter.
The city slowed down
The streets and paths of Argenteuil show more inhabited snow.
The train in the snow
Machine goes through winter; In Frost, on the contrary, everything seems to have stopped.
Winter sun
Lavacourt brings a goldener light, less dull than that of frost.
Disambiguation
Three Frost by Monet not to be confused
The French title varies depending on the catalogs and translations. Wildenstein issues, dates, locations and museums allow each work to be identified unambiguously.
| Work | Place and date | Dimensions | Collection |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frost, sun effect · W555 | Vétheuil, 1880 | 60.5 × 99.5 cm | Musée d'Orsay, RF 2706 - work analyzed on the cover. |
| Frost · W363 | Argenteuil, 1875 | 50 × 61 cm | Museum Barberini, MB-Mon-05 - reproduction offered in the store. |
| Frost in Giverny · W963 | Giverny, 1885 | 54 × 71 cm | Museum Barberini, MB-Mon-18. |
| The Pie · W133 | Étretat, 1868 -1869 | 89 × 130 cm | Musée d'Orsay, RF 1984 164 - major comparison for colored snow. |
| Vétheuil in winter · W507 | Vétheuil, 1878 -1879 | . | The Frick Collection - another winter view of the village. |
Works available
Five winter reproductions precisely identified
These five works show different winter lights. The first is W363 from Argenteuil, distinct from W555 from the Musée d'Orsay.
Argenteuil · 1875Frost W363
A garden in Argenteuil shared between blue shadow and warm light.
See reproduction
Giverny · 1885Frost in Giverny W963
The ground, trees and sky are distinguished by the direction of the brushstrokes.
See the workVétheuilVétheuil in winter W507
The village and the Seine seen in cold light.
See the work
Lavacourt · 1879Lavacourt, Winter W514
The towpath and the Seine in a clear range.
See the work
Argenteuil · 1875Snow effect, setting sun W362
White takes on pink and golden warmth.
See the workShop & collections
Continue with Monet, snow and Vétheuil
These collections allow us to locate Frost to all of Monet's winter and Seine landscapes.
FAQs
Frequently asked questions
The essential answers to identify the three homonymous works, understand the Toile d'Orsay and know exactly which reproduction is proposed.
What table is Frost analyzed in this article?
The cover image and main analysis concern Le Givre, sun effect W555, painted in Vétheuil in 1880 and kept at the Musée d'Orsay.
Where is Le Givre, sun effect W555 located?
The Musée d'Orsay situates the work in Vétheuil and the index as a winter landscape with pond, bushes, boat, poplars and frost. It is more prudent to speak of a frosty landscape than to assert that the entire foreground is the frozen Seine.
What are the dimensions and reference of W555?
The painting measures 60.5 × 99.5 cm. It bears the inventory number RF 2706 at the Musée d'Orsay and the number 555 of the Wildenstein catalog.
Why are there several paintings called The Frost?
Identical or very similar French titles have been attributed to several of Monet's winter landscapes. Wildenstein numbers, dates, places and museums help distinguish them.
What is Frost W363?
W363 is a garden in Argenteuil painted in 1875, measuring 50 × 61 cm and kept at the Museum Barberini under the number MB-Mon-05. It belongs to a group of eighteen landscapes from the winter of 1874 -1875.
What is Le Givre à Giverny W963?
W963 is an oil on canvas of 54 × 71 cm painted in Giverny in 1885. It is kept at the Museum Barberini under the number MB-Mon-18.
Where does the W555 painting from the Musée d'Orsay come from?
Probably acquired from Monet by Gustave Caillebotte during the 1880 exhibition, it entered the public collections after the acceptance of the Caillebotte legacy in 1896.
What is the difference between Le Frost W555 and La Pie?
The Magpie was painted in Étretat in 1868 -1869 and measures 89 × 130 cm. Orsay highlights his study of sun, shadow and half-solid, half-liquid matter; W555 is a later view of Vétheuil, structured by poplars, bushes, pond and boat.
Why aren't the snow and frost just white at Monet?
Monet uses blues, pinks, greens, browns and yellows to render shadows, reflections and light changes on cold surfaces.
Which work corresponds to the reproduction Le Givre sold in the store?
The reproduction linked in this article corresponds to Le Givre W363, painted in Argenteuil in 1875 and kept at the Museum Barberini. It does not reproduce the W555 canvas visible on the cover.
Sources
Reference museum notices
Titles, catalog numbers, dimensions, locations, dates and provenances are checked with the museums that preserve the works.
Musée d'Orsay
Frost, sun effect, 1880: dimensions, Vétheuil, provenance and exhibition.
W363 · MB-Mon-05Museum Barberini
Frost, 1875: Argenteuil garden and group of eighteen winter landscapes.
W963 · MB-Mon-18Museum Barberini
Frost at Giverny, 1885: format, touch, color and collection.
W133 · RF 1984 164Musée d'Orsay
The Magpie, 1868 -1869: light, shadows and snow matter.
WinterlandsMusée d'Orsay
Study of lands, blues and shades in Monet's first snow effects.
From Vétheuil to Argenteuil then Giverny, Monet shows that frost is never white: it takes on the color of each light.
Orsay's canvas W555, Barberini's reproduction W363 and landscape W963 form three distinct works, identified by their date and catalog number.
Discover Frost W363
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