Impression, Sunrise (2) Claude Oscar Monet (1840-1926)

Description of Claude Monet’s painting Impression, Sunrise

Claude Monet’s painting Impression, Sunrise was painted by him on a morning while the artist was in Le Havre, the city of his childhood. The painting depicts a morning sunrise in the port, a kind of symbol of the industrial revolution of the 19th century.

According to some art historians, Monet’s painting "Sunrise, Impression" depicts the port, which can be seen from the windows of the Admiralty Hotel in Le Havre.

Monet’s painting has a rich history. At first, the critics did not want to accept it, considering the picture talentless. But nevertheless, the picture was popular with the public, it fell into the hands of private owners, resold for a ridiculous price.

In the foreground of the picture depicts the sea in blue-green tones, highlighted two silhouettes of fishing boats. The bold highlighted dark brushstrokes and unexpressed silhouettes of the departing boats give a clear sense of the depth of the sea. All of the colors used in Impression, Sunrise are dull, muted. The only bright spot on the entire canvas is the clear orange disk of the sun rising over the French town, also blurred in the reflection of the restless sea water.

In the background, in the gray-blue mist, one can barely see the silhouettes of sailing ships, cranes at the pier and smokestacks. The smoke from the chimneys indicates a northeasterly wind.

If you look closely, the sun is not a bright spot here, either. Art historians and researchers at Harvard University have determined with a photometer that the brightness of the sun depicted and the piece of clear sky surrounding it are at the same level. Features of the human retina perceive the orange color of the sun as the brightest spot in the picture.

The pale orange rays of the sun mixed with dirty gray smoke give little or no clarity to the picture. It is not the sunlight that reigns in this area, but the shroud of industrial smoke the artist alludes to.