The Garden

During the last thirty years of his life and work, Monet was mainly concerned with the layout and design of his garden in Giverny, which is divided into the ornamental garden called clos normand and the so-called jardin d'eau or water garden with its water lily pond. Both often served as a motif for his paintings. He bought exotic plants, some of which had only been known in France for a few years, and composed the color interplay of the blossoms.

The Clos Normand
For his ornamental garden, which he called Clos Normand, Monet constantly bought new plants, some of them rare, which bloomed in all imaginable colors from spring to autumn. A sea of yellow and purple. Bright red poppy. Borders in blue, violet and white. Bright yellow-red nasturtium flowers & pastel roses. In addition to rare plants, daisies, sunflowers, tulips and daffodils grew.
The beds, which he called 'paintbox beds', were laid out systematically and often combined by color. Monet's flair for colors and shapes was translated into nature.

The Water Garden
Monet loved the water with its light reflections and reflections on the moving surface. He often spent hours in the water garden. In addition to maples and weeping willows, he sowed some Asian plants such as bamboo and gingko trees. In the center of the water garden was the artificial water lily pond with its red, pink and white water lilies and the wooden Japanese bridge.
Monet painted the same motifs over and over again. Fascinated by the cycle, the constantly changing nature, he wanted to immortalize the seemingly endless possibilities of reality in his pictures. The world-famous water lily pictures were created in the water garden –
the “Nymphéas”, to which Monet dedicated himself in his last years until his death in 1926.
The house and garden is open to visitors in Giverny. Between March and October there is always something new to discover and you can immerse yourself in the living painting for moments. The lushness in Monet's garden invites you to experiment and offers a lot of inspiration for the design of your own garden!