Our discovering of Giverny Monet’s house and garden
We spent a day discovering Giverny and the famous home of Impressionist painter Claude Monet. Passionate about art and the Impressionist movement, we entered Monet’s lair to discover his flower garden, the source of inspiration for his greatest paintings. We rounded off our discovery of Giverny with an enchanting lunch at the Jardin des plumes, a little haven of peace blending elegance and nature.
History of Claude Monet’s house in Giverny
Giverny is located in Normandy not far away from Paris. In this quiet place Claude Monet find this beautiful house at the end of the 19th century, a pittoresques place perfect to create inspiration by flowers and paint his most iconic master pieces.
Claude Monet, one of the most famous Impressionist painter, was also a gardener, and the garden at Giverny is his creation and primary inspiration. When he acquired his home in Giverny, he laid out his garden like a canvas: colorful flowerbeds, vegetable garden, water garden, water lily ponds, Japanese bridges and more.
The garden is a veritable showcase of colorful, inspiring beauty, where you feel right at home. It’s easy to understand why Claude Monet lived here for some 40 years, and why Giverny was his refuge. His greatest paintings, Les Nymphéas, were inspired and created here.
Visit of the beautiful Giverny garden
In 1883, Monet moved with his family to this lovely house in Giverny. He was already fascinated by the beauty of the surrounding nature, and had been seduced by the region’s verdant landscapes and fields of colorful flowers. He decided to create a garden inspired by his own paintings, a place where he could find inspiration for his future works.
As passionate gardener, Monet gradually transformed the land around his house into a living masterpiece. He dug a pond and planted water lilies, which would later become one of the most famous subjects of his paintings. He laid out winding paths lined with brightly colored flowerbeds, creating compositions of shapes and shades that resembled his paintings. The garden thus became his outdoor masterpiece, a constantly evolving work of art.
Over the years, Monet enlarged and perfected his garden, adapting it to his artistic style and vision. He drew his inspiration from the variations in light and color over the seasons, capturing the changing nuances of the landscape in his famous series of paintings, such as the “Water Lilies”.
Visit of Claude Monet’s house
The house itself was a warm refuge for Claude Monet and his family. The artist’s studio, where he painted many famous works, offered a panoramic view of the garden, allowing him to work in harmony with the natural world around him.
Today, the Maison de Claude Monet lives again, thanks to visitors who come to admire the garden in full bloom and feel the spirit of Claude Monet that continues to float through the grounds, making this house and garden a veritable treasure trove of art history.
We really enjoyed our visit to this magnificent place, where the gardens are exceptional and colorful, and we’d happily stay for a weekend to admire and be inspired by their beauty. Visiting the house gave us a better idea of the painter’s personality and the way he worked, particularly in his studio.
Lunch at the restaurant Jardin des plumes
We lunched in the outstanding jardin des plumes a charming hotel and Michelin-starred restaurant in Giverny, just a stone’s throw from Claude Monet’s home, that transports us into a world of exceptional flavors and sweetness.
The restaurant and hotel have been the work of David Gallienne and his teams since 2017. In his cuisine, the Chef takes us on a journey through Normandy’s terroir for an explosion of flavors and plates served with elegance and an artistic nod to Claude Monet.
We had a very pleasant time, the place is magnificent and very natural, the lunch was delicious, and the service was attentive, it’s the perfect end to a visit to Giverny.
If you’d like to take a trip to Giverny to discover the House of Claude Monet and tantalize your taste buds at the feather garden, don’t hesitate to contact our Travel Designer, who will organize an exceptional stay for you.
