Visit the gardens of Giverny in the heartland

In March, I traveled to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, Mo. to see this Claude Monet masterpiece in a special exhibition called “Monet Water Lilies: From Dawn to Dusk.”

It’s a ten-minute showing in a small gallery that features special lighting that illuminates and then dims to replicate the cycle of sunlight and its effects on the lush colors of Monet’s painting. (View the transition in the slide show above.)

The ten-minute dawn-to-dusk cycle repeats every fifteen minutes and you can view it from a bench in the middle of the small, secluded room.

While the painting reflects the peace of a French garden, Monet painted this artwork in the shadow of World War One.

Monet set his easel outside and painted, closely observing and attempting to render the effect of light in surface shapes, colors, and shadows as they shifted throughout the day. He completed the canvas in his studio from memory, as soldiers, including the artist’s son, and stepson marched to the front lines to defend their country. For Monet, his Water Lilies canvases offered an escape.

The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art

And who wouldn’t find these beautiful gardens to be an escape?

Despite the turmoil in the world, Claude Monet worked against it with these popular paintings.

There is no charge to view this exhibition, but call ahead to reserve your space for a specific time.

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