À propos de l’œuvre
Jean Monet (1867-1913) sur son cheval de passe-temps, par Claude Monet
Claude Monet · Portrait of his son in Argenteuil in 1872 · The Met
Jean Monet on his horse-tricycle W238hand painted reproduction
Jean Monet, aged five, poses in the family garden on a wooden horse-tricycle. His light costume, toy and sunny path stand out in front of deep vegetation. The portrait combines a father's attention with direct painting of the outdoors.
Look at the work
A child's portrait constructed by the toy and the garden
Jean is placed slightly to the left of the center, his bust almost frontal and his face turned towards the viewer. His brown hat, white collar and ivory suit make up a luminous silhouette. His hands hold the head and handles of the horse-tricycle.
The three large black wheels outline the basis of the composition. The light path makes them perfectly legible, while the dark hedge detaches the upper body. On the right, a few red flowers interrupt the greens and respond to the details painted on the toy.
The horse-tricycle is not a simple accessory: its wheels, its diagonals and its colors organize the entire portrait.
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.
Three wheels as a frame
Their succession stabilizes the figure and gives the toy a mechanical presence. The diagonals of the frame and the horse, however, prevent the whole thing from appearing immobile.
A light silhouette on a dark background
Jean's costume stands out from the hedge, but he takes the beiges from the path. The child thus belongs simultaneously to the garden and to the foreground.
Measured red accents
The harness, saddle and flowers use small red touches. They guide the eye between the toy and the vegetation without competing with the face.
Reference image
Read this specific version
The reference corresponds to the Metropolitan Museum of Art's 2000.195 inventory and Wildenstein number 238. The high definition makes the painted date near the signature, the details of the horse and the flowers in the garden legible.
A child-level look
The view remains low and direct. Jean occupies the stage without official monumentality, in the familiar space of the garden.
Colorful whites
The costume mixes cream, pink, gray and pale blue. These variations give volume to the folds despite the strong light.
Widely brushed vegetation
The hedge is made of thick, irregular touches, freer than the precise lines of the wheels and toy.
Documented benchmarks
Three pieces of information specific to this work
The Metropolitan Museum of Art documents this portrait under inventory 2000.195; the Wildenstein catalog raisonné classifies it under number 238.
Jean Monet, five years old
Jean, eldest son of Claude and Camille Monet, was represented during the summer of 1872 in the garden of the Argenteuil family home.
A work kept by Monet
The museum specifies that Monet never exhibited this portrait and kept it throughout his life, which gave him a particularly intimate place in his work.
Don Sara Lee Corporation, 2000
The painting entered the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2000 and has object number 2000.195.
Your reproduction
What the painter must preserve
Fidelity here depends on precise relationships between light, touch, depth and color temperature.
- Preserve the calm expression and proportions of Jean's face.
- Trace the wheels and frame of the tricycle without stiffening the surrounding touch.
- Build the costume with several colored whites and transparent shadows.
- Maintain the contrast between the light path, the dark hedge and the small red accents.
Work sheet
| Title | Jean Monet on his horse-tricycle W238 |
|---|---|
| Artist | Claude Monet (1840 -1926) |
| Date | 1872 |
| Original technique | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 60.6 × 74.3 cm |
| Orientation | Horizontal |
| Conservation | Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, United States |
| Inventory | 2000.195 · Wildenstein 238 |
| Your reproduction | Handmade oil painting on canvas |
Presentation in your interior
A palette designed with the room
This portrait combines family intimacy with a very readable graphic construction. Deep greens, cream tones and red accents are suitable for a living room, bedroom or office; a natural wood, dark green or old gold frame accompanies its warmth.
