À propos de l’œuvre
Les étagères, par Claude Monet
Claude Monet · Giverny · 1885 · W994
W994 Grindstoneshand painted reproduction
In a field in Giverny, a large millstone dominates the right while a second, smaller and lighter, recedes towards the edge. The agitated trees, the blue sky crossed by clouds and the grasses painted in quick touches envelop the agricultural motif in a light of midsummer. Long poorly titled "The shelves" on this sheet, the work is indeed Les Meules, oil on canvas from 1885 measuring 65.2 × 81.5 cm, preserved at the Ohara Museum of Art under number 1145 and listed Wildenstein 994.
Look at the work
Two very different sized grinding wheels give the field immediate depth
The large millstone is cut almost tangentially by the right edge and rises to the dark line of the trees. Its brown, mauve and golden volume contrasts with the small pink millstone placed further to the left. Their difference in scale is enough to dig into space without a drawn perspective.
The edge forms a flexible diagonal that descends to the left. Above, the foliage leans and the clouds stretch in the same direction; below, the green, pink and yellow touches of the field resume this movement. The entire landscape seems to be crossed by the same breath.
Long before the famous series of 1890 -1891, Monet already used the millstone as a simple volume capable of recording the time, season and color of the air.
Composition, touch and light
What Monet builds behind the impression of snapshot
Three precise elements allow us to understand this composition and the essential difficulties of faithful reproduction.
A pattern prior to the large series
W994 dates from 1885, five years before the twenty-five millstones painted near his house from 1890. Monet already explored the relationship between a stable shape and a changing luminous environment.
A deliberately unbalanced composition
The main mass occupies the right and the small millstone remains isolated on the left. The trees and the sky restore balance through their diagonals, without artificially refocusing the subject.
A material made of superimposed colors
In the large millstone, browns receive pink, blue and yellow. These accents indicate the reliefs of the straw and the variations of light without resorting to a smooth pattern.
Reference image
Read this specific version
The only image comes from the Google Art Project scan released for the Ohara Museum of Art. The source file of 5041 × 4041 px is limited to 3000 × 2405 px then encoded as a real WebP.
Respect the scale ratio between the two grinding wheels
The second must remain small but clearly visible. If it is enlarged, the depth of field decreases; if it disappears, the foreground becomes too massive.
Maintain the movement of trees and clouds
Their common inclination gives air to the composition. Too regular foliage or a still sky would make the scene decorative and static.
Keep colors cool in the straw
Blues and mauves contribute to the volume of the large millstone. Replacing them with a uniform brown would remove the impressionist vibration and the relationship with the sky.
Documented benchmarks
Three pieces of information specific to this work
Art Platform Japan documents Haystacks, oil on canvas from 1885, 65.2 × 81.5 cm, inventory 1145 (IA・12) at the Ohara Museum of Art and catalog Wildenstein 994.
Claude Monet, 85, lower right
The signature and date shown on the canvas directly confirm the year 1885 and make it possible to distinguish this version from later series.
From Monet to the Matsukata collection
After visits to Georges Petit, to the Leroux and Chocquet sales then to Wilhelm Hansen, the work belonged around 1924 to Kôjiro Matsukata, a great collector of Western art.
An acquisition of the Ohara Museum in 1978
After the Wada and Sakai collections, the painting was acquired by the Kurashiki Museum. Today it bears the number 1145 (IA・12).
Your reproduction
What the painter must preserve
Fidelity here depends on precise relationships between light, touch, depth and color temperature.
- The Wildenstein 994 version
- The large millstone off-center to the right
- The little pink millstone near the edge
- The blue and mauve touches mixed with the straw
Work sheet
| Title | W994 Grindstones |
|---|---|
| Artist | Claude Monet (1840 -1926) |
| Date | 1885 |
| Original technique | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 65.2 × 81.5 cm |
| Orientation | Horizontal |
| Conservation | Ohara Museum of Art, Kurashiki, Japan |
| Inventory | 1145 (IA・12) · Wildenstein 994 |
| Your reproduction | Handmade oil painting on canvas |
Presentation in your interior
A palette designed with the room
This horizontal rural scene brings fresh light to a living room, dining room or bedroom. A sage green, sky blue or cream wall and a natural wood frame highlight its pinks, greens and blues.
