NEW EXHIBITION EXPLORES SUBTLETIES OF SERIALITY
IN MONET’S WATERLOO BRIDGE PAINTINGS
Drawing on New Research into the Artist’s Process,
Monet’s Waterloo Bridge: Vision and Process Will Bring Nine Major Works into New Light
Worcester, MA—December 17, 2018—This January, the Worcester Art Museum will explore Claude Monet’s dedication to capturing on canvas subtle temporal and atmospheric changes, through a presentation of nine paintings from his Waterloo Bridge series. The exhibition will examine how these ephemeral elements impacted his painting process, from his choice of palette to his brushstrokes. Painted during Monet’s extended visits to London in 1899, 1900, and 1901, the Waterloo Bridge series exemplifies the spirit of Monet’s Impressionistic style as well as iconic associations with turn-of-the-century London, from the fog-bound landscape to the ongoing industrialization of the City. In addition to the nine paintings, all from North American collections and including the Worcester Art Museum’s own 1903 work, the exhibition will include extensive new information about Monet’s process, based on recent technical analyses of the paintings. Monet’s Waterloo Bridge: Vision and Process will be on view at the Museum from January 25 – April 28, 2019.
“While much attention has been paid to analyzing Monet’s French series, such as the Water Lilies and Grainstacks, his London works are finally receiving the renewed critical focus they deserve,” said the exhibition’s curator, Nancy Kathryn Burns, the Museum’s Associate Curator of Prints, Drawings & Photographs. “The turn-of-the-twentieth-century was a transformative time in London’s growth, and Monet’s paintings reflect this through years of analyzing the same architectural sites. The Waterloo Bridges are unique among the three London series in that they highlight the industrial, public face of the city, a modern shift for an artist so closely associated with idyllic landscapes. This exhibition is a terrific opportunity for visitors to have an intensive, intimate viewing experience of a leading Impressionist painter, through a focused lens that encourages comparisons across these nine related works.”
Monet’s Waterloo Bridge is structured to examine two central themes. The first is Monet’s vision, the approach he took as a painter working to capture what he saw and how he translated that vision into the innovative serial approach for which he is best known. The second theme looks at the artist’s process, including his all-over painting style, bold palette and the results of newly conducted conservation research on several of the paintings in the exhibition. Additionally, the works will be complemented by a series of interactives that let visitors explore in more detail aspects of Monet’s process drawn from the research, including how he started each of his canvases, to the approach he took blending paint colors to achieve a desired visual effect.
Another interactive helps visitors navigate the London landscape at the turn of the 19th – 20th centuries, identifying the buildings seen in the paintings. Also included in the exhibition is a short film that explores Monet’s impact on the history of art, from the perspective of respected Monet scholar professor Grace Seiberling of the University of Rochester, James Hamm, professor emeritus of painting conservation at Buffalo State College, as well as a the perspective of a working artist.
Over the course of his visits to London, Monet (1840‒1926) produced three architectural series: the Charing Cross Bridge, the Houses of Parliament, and the Waterloo Bridge. The River Thames served as a visual through-line, uniting these locations and furthering Monet’s desire to investigate the effects of London’s diffuse light and atmosphere on the colors of the river, the smoggy haze and the reflected light surrounding the structures during high and low tides. He ultimately painted more than 40 versions of the Waterloo Bridge working directly from the balcony of his room at London’s fashionable Savoy Hotel.
As with his other series, Monet envisioned individual works as key to understanding each series as a whole, making the relationship between different paintings more important than any single representation. That approach is essential to this exhibition, where the opportunity to view nine variants of Waterloo Bridge allows visitors to engage with Monet’s work as he intended: as a group. Following his visit in 1901, Monet returned to France to continue working on these paintings, importantly drawing on his memory rather than working onsite as had been his practice for nearly all of his career.
“The Worcester Art Museum has always had a hunger for the new, as is reflected in the fact that the Museum purchased its Waterloo Bridge painting in 1910, just a few years after Monet finished it,” said Matthias Waschek, C. Jean and Myles McDonough Director of the Worcester Art Museum. “We are excited to be able to present our great painting in an exhibition that engages viewers in appreciating Monet’s skill at capturing a sense of atmosphere, while also sharing new insights into his technique.”
The exhibition Monet’s Waterloo Bridge: Vision and Process and accompanying catalogue and technology originated at the Memorial Art Gallery of the University of Rochester, Rochester, New York. The catalogue, published by Rochester Institute of Technology Press and the Memorial Art Gallery, was edited by Nancy Norwood, curator of European art at the Memorial Art Gallery and includes contributions by Norwood; Professor Grace Seiberling of the University of Rochester; Jennifer Thompson, curator of European art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art; and James Hamm, head of paintings conservation at Buffalo State College. This exhibition is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.
Monet’s Waterloo Bridge: Vision and Process was adapted for special presentation at the Worcester Art Museum. Lenders include: Art Institute of Chicago, Baltimore Museum of Art, Carnegie Museum of Art, Davis Museum at Wellesley College, Denver Art Museum, Memorial Art Gallery, Milwaukee Art Museum, and National Gallery of Art. The exhibition is sponsored by the Bassick Family Foundation and Cornerstone Bank; media partners are The Boston Globe and WBUR. Additional support is provided by the Ruth and John Adam, Jr. Exhibition Fund, the Heald Curatorial Fund, and the Michie Family Curatorial Fund.
Related Events
Opening Reception: Water Lilies to Waterloo: An Evening of Monet and Flowers
Friday, January 25, 5:30-8pm
The public is invited to a joint celebration of the opening Monet’s Waterloo Bridge and Flora in Winter, the Museum’s annual interpretive floral event. In addition to a delightful fusion of art and flowers, guests will enjoy entertainment, live music, hearty hors d’oeuvres, and cash bar. Tickets can be purchased from worcesterart.org/flora.
Master Series Third Thursday: New Light on Monet
Thursday, February 21, 2019, 6pm
Gloria Groom, PhD, David and Winton Green Curator at The Art Institute of Chicago, discusses new research on Claude Monet’s paintings and what it reveals about the artist’s techniques and process. A reception with music and cash bar will follow the lecture. Master Series Third Thursdays are hosted by the WAM Members Council, sponsored by Abbvie, and presented with support from the Bernard and Louise Palitz Fund and the Amelia and Robert H. Haley Memorial Lecture Fund.
About Worcester Art Museum
Founded in 1896, the Worcester Art Museum’s encyclopedic 38,000 piece collection covers 51 centuries of art. Highlights include the Medieval Chapter House, Renaissance Court, and Worcester Hunt Mosaic, as well as the recently integrated John Woodman Higgins Armory collection of arms and armor. The Museum is internationally known for its collection of European and American art. It was the first in America to acquire paintings by Monet and Gauguin and one of the first to exhibit photography as fine art. As the one of the first U.S. museums to focus on collaborating with local schools, it has been at the forefront of engaging audiences and giving them a meaningful and personal experience for over a century.
The Worcester Art Museum, located at 55 Salisbury Street in Worcester, MA, is open Wednesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and every third Thursday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Admission is $16 for adults, $6 for children 4-17, $14 for seniors 65+, and $14 for college students with ID. Members and children under four are free. Parking is free. For more information, visit worcesterart.org.