À propos de l’œuvre
La neige à Argenteuil, par Claude Monet
Claude Monet · Boulevard Saint-Denis under the snow · National Gallery, London
Street under the snow in Argenteuil W352hand painted reproduction
Two figures advance slowly on a snowy road in Argenteuil. The brown traces of the carts wind up to the houses and the church which dissolve in the mist. Monet built this overcast afternoon with an almost monochrome palette of white, blue, gray and pink, thickened in the foreground to make the snow physically present.
Look at the work
Ruts and walkers cross a suburb erased by snow
The road starts very wide at the bottom of the canvas then narrows towards the center. Two brown marks undulate in the snow and lead to the characters, one of whom is wearing a blue jacket. To the left and right, low fences hold gardens covered in white.
The bare trees frame the space with thin branches placed on the pink gray sky. In the distance, recent houses and bell tower are barely visible. The National Gallery identifies Boulevard Saint-Denis, looked towards its intersection with Rue de la Voie des Bans and the Seine.
Snow not only transforms color: it slows bodies, softens buildings and gives the path an almost silent depth.
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 perspective guided by flexible traces
Ruts do not form two straight lines. They wind, interrupt and change width; their movement draws the eye into the mist while making the thickness of the snow irregular.
A clear palette warmed with pink
Whites, blues and grays dominate, but small touches of pinks, brunettes and reds circulate in the sky, the trees and the road. These accents avoid a cold, uniformly white scene.
A modern suburb made almost rural
The houses, the path to the station and the bell tower belong to an expanding Argenteuil. However, snow and fog mask this modernity and temporarily transform the street into a silent landscape.
Reference image
Read this specific version
The visual corresponds to the Street under the snow in Argenteuil of the National Gallery, inventory NG6607 and Wildenstein number 352. High definition scanning is offered in real WebP of 3,000 × 2,373 px.
Snow must maintain several temperatures
Blue in the shadows, pink under the sky and warmer white on the reliefs produce depth. A single white value would flatten the road and gardens.
The branches are placed after the large masses
Their fine, calligraphic features stand out against the already established sky. Painting them too thick or too numerous would reduce the feeling of mist that envelops the scene.
Matter thickens in the foreground
Monet accumulates more paint on the nearby road to suggest deep snow. This tactile difference must remain perceptible without transforming the entire canvas into uniform relief.
Documented benchmarks
Three pieces of information specific to this work
Painted in 1875, this oil on canvas measures 71.1 × 91.4 cm. It is kept at the National Gallery under the NG6607 inventory and listed as Wildenstein 352.
One of eighteen views from winter 1874 -1875
Monet devotes eighteen paintings to Argenteuil under the snow during this winter. This is the largest of the group and favors a general atmospheric effect rather than a detailed anecdote.
Boulevard Saint-Denis near the station
Monet paints not far from his house, his back turned to the station. Both figures can go to or from trains; their slow walk concretely measures the effect of snow on daily life.
From Théodore Duret to the Simon Sainsbury legacy
Théodore Duret bought the work from Monet in December 1879. After several collections, it belonged to Simon Sainsbury, who bequeathed it to the National Gallery in 2006.
Your reproduction
What the painter must preserve
Fidelity here depends on precise relationships between light, touch, depth and color temperature.
- Maintain winding ruts and their perspective.
- Vary the whites with subtle blues, pinks and grays.
- Let the houses and the bell tower dissolve into the distance.
- Thicken the material especially in the foreground road.
Work sheet
| Title | Street under the snow in Argenteuil W352 |
|---|---|
| Artist | Claude Monet (1840 -1926) |
| Date | 1875 |
| Original technique | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 71.1 × 91.4 cm |
| Orientation | Horizontal |
| Conservation | National Gallery, London, United Kingdom |
| Inventory | NG6607 · Wildenstein 352 |
| Your reproduction | Handmade oil painting on canvas |
Presentation in your interior
A palette designed with the room
This winter landscape is suitable for a quiet bedroom, living room or office. An off-white, bluish gray or light oak frame accompanies the snow; a linen, powder pink or mist blue wall highlights the atmosphere.
