Snow Scene at Argenteuil by Claude Monet (1875)
On display: National Gallery, Room 41 or via the website
In October I featured Monet’s Autumn Effect at Argenteuil (1873). As I was looking for suitable wintery paintings on display in London galleries or on their websites to share with you, I kept coming back to this one. Another one of Monet’s paintings of Argenteuil.
During Monet’s six year stay in Argenteuil, he painted around 200 pictures of the town and its surroundings. This picture, Snow Scene at Argenteuil, is one of 18 Argenteuil canvases that record the snowy winter of 1874/5.
Despite really being a summer girl, I do have a fondness for the pale winter light, and I think this painting captures it so well. I like the pale pink tones which come through and are so often present in late afternoon in winter skies. The greys and blues of this palette are in tones which appeal to me and give a sense of peacefulness. Whilst the buildings and the church almost blur into the background as the light fades. The snow looks deep and the uneven tracks in the foreground show that progress along that road was probably slow and approached with caution.
I love this gentle snowy scene. It captures some of what I romantically remember from my own childhood. I grew up in a small Norfolk Village where if it snowed heavily we would soon be snowed in. I of course remember the joy in the unexpected days off school, the snowball fights, wet feet and sodden mittens limp with snow being dried by the fire.
