À propos de l’œuvre
Waterloo Bridge, effet de soleil, par Claude Monet
Claude Monet · 1899 -1901 · Zurich · W1593
Waterloo Bridge, sun effect W1593hand painted reproduction
A creamy yellow light invades the sky, the bridge and the Thames until the contrasts are reduced to a minimum. Waterloo Bridge nevertheless remains perceptible by its blue-green arches, its pink line and the orange-brown sails which animate the river.
Look at the work
Sunlight becomes the real subject as London dissolves
The sky occupies almost the upper half and has no sharp edges. Pale yellows, cold pinks, gray greens and a few blues overlap in thin layers. The distant shore is nothing more than a colorful vibration above the apron.
Under the bridge, the water takes on the same colors but in a more horizontal touch. The arches cool the range and the sails bring small red accents. This subtle organization makes it possible to distinguish air, stone and water without resorting to drawing.
Monet does not paint a white fog placed in front of London: he constructs a colorful atmosphere where each element remains readable by its temperature rather than by its outline.
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 bright sky without a drawn solar source
The yellows diffuse among the pinks and grays. No disc appears; light is present everywhere and should not be artificially concentrated.
The bridge as a series of colored values
Pale pink on the apron, blue-green in the arches and yellow on the small punctuations are enough to build Waterloo Bridge. The black lines would be foreign to this version.
Reflections that are more gestural than symmetrical
The Thames fragments the colors of the bridge and sails. Horizontal gestures must retain their irregularity and changing direction.
Details and visual documents
Observe the material and the exact version
The additional images show the difficult-to-read passages in the full view and, where it exists, the actual appearance of the work at the museum.
The exact view measures 2,400 × 1,543 px; the two additional details measure 1,500 × 750 px and 1,500 × 850 px. No files have been enlarged and all three images are real WebPs.
Documented benchmarks
Three pieces of information specific to this work
These facts concern this precise version and are verified from the notice of the institution which keeps it.
Waterloo Bridge, London, Sun Effect
This version was painted between 1899 and 1901 in oil on a 65 × 100 cm canvas. It is listed under Wildenstein number 1593.
Bührle 74 Foundation and Kunsthaus BU 0074
The work belongs to the EG Bührle Collection Foundation. It is today documented and presented at the Kunsthaus Zürich under number BU 0074.
A variation among the views of Waterloo Bridge
Monet takes over the bridge at different times and in several atmospheres. The paintings were started in front of the motif in London, then harmonized at length in his workshop in Giverny.
Your reproduction
What the painter must preserve
Fidelity here depends on precise relationships between light, touch, depth and color temperature.
- The version specifies W1593 from the Bührle Foundation
- The original format of 65 × 100 cm
- Light diffuses without uniform white
- Arches built by color temperature
Work sheet
| Title | Waterloo Bridge, sun effect W1593 |
|---|---|
| Artist | Claude Monet (1840 -1926) |
| Date | 1899 - 1901 |
| Original technique | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 65 × 100 cm |
| Orientation | Horizontal |
| Conservation | EG Bührle Collection Foundation, Kunsthaus Zürich, Switzerland |
| Inventory | 74 · BU 0074 · Wildenstein 1593 |
| Your reproduction | Handmade oil painting on canvas |
Presentation in your interior
A palette designed with the room
Cream, mist pink, blue green and orange-brown create a soft but very bright palette. This reproduction fits into a warm white, greige, sea green or pale blue wall.
