A center dominated by colored whites
The dress, tablecloth and sleeves are never uniform white. They receive blue, pink, ocher and the green shadows of the clearing; these gaps give the light its power without erasing the volumes.
Canvas reproduction
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Oil painting on rolled canvas, unframed. Custom size available on request.
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Artwork description
Claude Monet · Central fragment of the monumental project of 1865 -1866 · Musée d'Orsay
Around a white tablecloth covered with fruit, dishes and baskets, four figures appear in a clearing. The light dress of the seated woman captures an almost blinding light, while the standing men and women stand out in the deep greens. This central fragment is one of only two preserved remains of Monet's monumental Luncheon on the Grass.

Look at the work
In the foreground, the tablecloth extends diagonally and bears an abundant still life: fruit, bread, bottle, dishes, basket and fabrics. The seated woman opens her arms and turns her face towards the viewer. Behind her, a standing man holds a garment or blanket, while a woman in a light dress leans towards the group.
On the left, the bearded figure remains partially caught in the shadows. The Musée d'Orsay notes its striking resemblance to Gustave Courbet, who came to see Monet and Bazille during the winter of 1865 -1866. The vertical birches and low branches give a natural architecture to this open-air social gathering.
This fragment should not be read as a randomly cropped painting: it preserves the luminous core of a composition which originally measured more than four by six meters.
Composition, touch and light
Three precise elements allow us to understand this composition and the essential difficulties of faithful reproduction.
The dress, tablecloth and sleeves are never uniform white. They receive blue, pink, ocher and the green shadows of the clearing; these gaps give the light its power without erasing the volumes.
Dark clothing, foliage and trunks respond to each other with color. Monet avoids the effect of silhouettes placed in front of a setting: the characters belong to the same fragmented light as the trees.
The tablecloth and gestures open the space to the right, while the birches rise almost parallel. This opposition stabilizes a scene that is nevertheless dense and explains its effectiveness on a monumental scale.
Reference image
The image shows the central part kept at the Musée d'Orsay, inventory RF 1987 12 and catalog Wildenstein 63/2. The WebP file of 2,247 × 2,590 px respects the current shape of the fragment and allows figures such as the still life.
Its sleeves, dress and tablecloth fit into a wide light area. Their internal limits must be preserved by small cold and warm variations without creating a dark outline.
His face, his coat and his beard combine brown, green and colored black. An opaque black mass would make his posture disappear and break the gradual passage towards the undergrowth.
The fruits, baskets and containers are precise but subordinate to the whole. Their ocher, red and brown touches must punctuate the tablecloth without becoming a succession of meticulously surrounded objects.
Documented benchmarks
This central fragment painted in 1865 -1866 measures 248.7 × 218 cm and weighs 97 kg. It is kept at the Musée d'Orsay under the inventory RF 1987 12 and cataloged Wildenstein 63/2.
Monet began this immense composition in the spring of 1865 as a tribute as well as a challenge to Manet's Déjeuner sur l'herbe, shown at the Salon des Refusés of 1863. He wanted to present it at the Salon of 1866.
Pawned for rent, the canvas is kept rolled up in a cellar and suffers from humidity. Monet recovered it in 1884, cut it out and kept three fragments; only two are known today.
After remaining with Monet and then in the collection of his son Michel, this fragment entered the national collections by donation in 1987. An additional strip had already been removed on the right after 1920.
Your reproduction
Fidelity here depends on precise relationships between light, touch, depth and color temperature.
| Title | Lunch on the Grass, central fragment W63/2 |
|---|---|
| Artist | Claude Monet (1840 -1926) |
| Date | 1865 - 1866 |
| Original technique | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 248.7 × 218 cm |
| Orientation | Monumental vertical |
| Conservation | Musée d'Orsay, Paris, France |
| Inventory | RF 1987 12 · Wildenstein 63/2 |
| Your reproduction | Handmade oil painting on canvas |
Presentation in your interior
This spectacular fragment is suitable for a high-ceilinged living room, entrance or library. A walnut, bronze or deep green frame highlights the undergrowth; an ivory, light stone or gray green wall reveals the large white areas.
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