↗France, late 19th century-early 20th century · c. 1915–26
Water Lilies (Agapanthus)
Claude Monet
Colour palette
#0A0B0E#221D0D#16130D#120E0C#69542F#443319
Approximate colour proportions
Estimated from six colour groups in the museum image, including visible paper or borders. Reproduction and lighting affect the result; these are image-area proportions, not pigment measurements.
Bequest of Leonard C. Hanna Jr. · The Cleveland Museum of Art
Image: public domain (CC0) · Museum record & image source ↗
France, 19th century · c. 1878–80
Paul Lafond and Alphonse Cherfils Examining a Painting
- Date
- c. 1878–80
- Medium
- oil on wood panel
- Dimensions
- Framed: 42.5 x 50 x 6 cm (16 3/4 x 19 11/16 x 2 3/8 in.); Unframed: 27 x 34 cm (10 5/8 x 13 3/8 in.)
- Country / context
- France
- Movement / tradition
- Impressionism · Source ↗
- Collection
- The Cleveland Museum of Art
- Pathway
- European and American art ↗
FROM THE MUSEUM
The upper left corner of this painting bears a dedication by Degas "to his dear friends." The double portrait depicts Paul Lafond (left), future curator of the art museum at Pau, in southwestern France, and Alphonse Cherfils (right), an art collector and defender of the Impressionists. Through the influence of these friends, Degas's works were selected for the annual exhibitions of the Société des Amis des Arts (Society of Friends of the Arts), and his painting, A Cotton Office (1873), was the first by the artist to be purchased by a museum. Since the painting held by the two men is probably by Degas, this intimate image commemorates both personal and business relationships.
Collection text · The Cleveland Museum of Art · CC0A MOMENT TO LOOK
Start with what you can see: shapes, surface, colour and scale. How might the listed materials affect the way this object was made and experienced?
Looking prompt · an invitation to observe, not a historical interpretation.
