À propos de l’œuvre
Sous-bois dans la forêt de Saint-Germain, par Claude Monet
Claude Monet · Saint-Germain · 1882 · W750
Undergrowth in the Saint-Germain forest W750hand painted reproduction
A path covered with leaves sinks under a vault of trees where greens, reds and gold mingle in speckled light. Painted in 1882, this oil on vertical canvas measuring 81 × 65 cm belongs to the Yoshino Gypsum collection and is deposited in the Yamagata Art Museum; it corresponds to Wildenstein 750.
Look at the work
The trail transforms the undergrowth into a tunnel of light
The vertical trunks line a path that quickly narrows towards a small, clear opening. The foliage meets above the path and almost completely closes the sky.
Emerald green, yellow, orange, red and pink are distributed in tight touches. The ground takes on the colors of the canopy, as if the light and the leaves fell together on the path.
The gaze advances less thanks to the design of the path than to a succession of luminous zones which pierce the plant density.
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 vertical format suitable for trees
The proportions of 81 × 65 cm reinforce the height of the trunks and the feeling of envelopment. The aisle rises into the painting instead of extending laterally.
A depth at the heart of the keys
Colors become smaller and lighter toward the center. This variation is enough to move the opening away without architectural outline.
A rare painting from the stay in Poissy
Monet produced few paintings preserved in this region. The neighboring forest of Saint-Germain offers it a motif distinct from the banks of the Seine and the Normandy cliffs.
Reference image
Read this specific version
Only one exact image of W750 is used. The real WebP measures 381 × 480 px, the best reliable public definition provided by the collection, without artificial enlargement.
Maintain the verticality of the trunks
They structure the aisle and prevent the colored touches from becoming an undifferentiated surface.
Preserve the reds and pinks of the soil
These colors respond to the foliage and give the undergrowth its warmth. Replacing them with brown would make the scene too dark.
Keep center opening small
It acts as a distant calling point. Enlarging it would reduce the feeling of a plant tunnel.
Documented benchmarks
Three pieces of information specific to this work
The Yoshino Gypsum Art Foundation documents Undergrowth in the Forest of Saint-Germain, oil on canvas from 1882, 81 × 65 cm, deposited at the Yamagata Art Museum and listed as Wildenstein 750.
Offered by Monet to WH Fuller in 1897
The inscription on the reverse recalls the artist's gift to the American author of a monograph devoted to his paintings.
From Fuller to the Yoshino Gypsum collection
The painting notably includes Georges Petit, Wilhelm Hansen, Wildenstein and the Seward Johnson collection before its entry into the Japanese foundation.
The Wildenstein 750 canvas
Its vertical format, its central path and its vault of red, pink and green foliage allow it to be precisely identified.
Your reproduction
What the painter must preserve
Fidelity here depends on precise relationships between light, touch, depth and color temperature.
- The Wildenstein 750 version
- The vertical format of 81 × 65 cm
- The trail under the canopy of trees
- The pink, red and green light of the foliage
Work sheet
| Title | Undergrowth in the Saint-Germain forest W750 |
|---|---|
| Artist | Claude Monet (1840 -1926) |
| Date | 1882 |
| Original technique | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 81 × 65 cm |
| Orientation | Vertical |
| Conservation | Yamagata Art Museum, Yamagata, Japan |
| Inventory | Yoshino Gypsum Collection · Wildenstein 750 |
| Your reproduction | Handmade oil painting on canvas |
Presentation in your interior
A palette designed with the room
This warm undergrowth is suitable for an entrance, bedroom or office. A deep green wall, pale or cream terracotta and a natural wood frame extend its atmosphere.
