À propos de l’œuvre
Meules, effet de neige, par Claude Monet
Claude Monet · Giverny · 1890 -1891 · W1281
Grinding wheel, snow effect, overcast weather W1281hand painted reproduction
A single millstone occupies the snowy field in front of the houses and trees of Giverny, under an overcast sky which diffuses a cold light. Painted in 1890 -1891, this oil on canvas measuring 66 × 93 cm is kept at the Art Institute of Chicago under number 1933.1155 and corresponds to Wildenstein 1281.
Look at the work
Under the overcast sky, the snow reveals unexpected colors
The millstone is placed slightly to the left of the center and dominates a strip of low houses. Its dark base anchors itself in the field, while its rounded top rises in front of the trees. The more open space on the right lets the winter landscape breathe.
The snow cover is never uniform white: it mixes blue, lilac, pink and very pale green. On the millstone, yellows and greens remain under cold passages. The gray-purple sky unifies the scene without extinguishing these contrasts.
In W1281, overcast weather does not remove color; it moves it into the halftones of snow, straw and trees.
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 dense shape in front of an inhabited horizon
The millstone hides part of the houses and vegetation. This covering gives it a monumental presence while reminding us that the motif belongs to a real agricultural landscape.
A light without clear shadow
The overcast sky distributes the light throughout the field. The volumes are therefore based on changes in temperature and saturation rather than on strongly drawn chiaroscuro.
Layers that preserve the history of the image
The museum's infrared and radiographic study reveals another millstone removed during execution as well as bright greens and yellows under the snowy passages.
Reference image
Read this specific version
The sheet uses a single exact image of W1281. The real WebP measures 3,000 × 2,101 px and allows you to observe the colorful overlays of snow and straw.
Keep the grinding wheel slightly off-center
The mass should not slide towards the exact middle. The opening on the right balances its weight and allows you to read the houses, the trees then the hill.
Build snow by reflected colors
Blue, pink, mauve and green should remain noticeable between light keys. Covering them with a uniform opaque white would make the atmosphere of overcast weather disappear.
Preserve yellows in cool tones
Warm passages still appear in the straw and near the ground. They give an internal depth to the surface and avoid a simply gray finish.
Documented benchmarks
Three pieces of information specific to this work
The Art Institute of Chicago documents Grindstone, snow effect, overcast weather, oil on canvas from 1890 -1891, 66 × 93 cm, inventory 1933.1155 and Wildenstein 1281.
Giverny millstones in winter
Monet uses the same pattern under the snow, in the sun, in the fog and at different times. Each canvas becomes an autonomous study of the relationships between matter and light.
A painting signed and dated 1891
The inscription Claude Monet 91 appears at the bottom right. It places the completion of the work at the moment when the artist prepares the public presentation of the series.
A wheel removed running
Scientific examinations of the museum show that a second millstone was first found in the composition. Its deletion focuses the eye on the unique form preserved.
Your reproduction
What the painter must preserve
Fidelity here depends on precise relationships between light, touch, depth and color temperature.
- The Wildenstein 1281 version
- The single millstone in front of the houses of Giverny
- Blue, pink and pale green snow
- The diffused light of the overcast sky
Work sheet
| Title | Grinding wheel, snow effect, overcast weather W1281 |
|---|---|
| Artist | Claude Monet (1840 -1926) |
| Date | 1890 - 1891 |
| Original technique | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 66 × 93 cm |
| Orientation | Horizontal |
| Conservation | Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States |
| Inventory | 1933.1155 · Wildenstein 1281 |
| Your reproduction | Handmade oil painting on canvas |
Presentation in your interior
A palette designed with the room
This cold and soft harmony is suitable for a bright bedroom, office or living room. A pearl gray, mist blue or powder pink wall, combined with light oak, takes up the colored snow without fading the millstone.
