Monet"s Haystacks
Monet chose to use Haystacks as a set of neutral objects around which he could experiment with the effects of external forces such as the time of the day, the season and the position in which he was looking at the Haystack.
Some included several together whilst others focused solely on one, taking the opportunity to add much more detail than otherwise would have been possible.
Following on from the success of the Haystacks series, other notable paintings by Monet included the likes of Water-Lilies, Venice Twilight.
Bouquet Of Sunflowers.
The Japanese Bridge.
Impression Sunrise.
Monet's Garden at Argentueil.
The Water Lily Pond and Poplars On The Epte.
Besides the series of Haystacks in Giverny, Monet also regularly revisited other objects, with a great attention on several items which could be found in his own garden, such as the Japanese Bridge and the pond of water lilies which passed by underneath.
These have become much loved in the mainstream with such topics sitting well with the tastes of the average punter, but those who prefer to learn more about their art find that Haystacks represents much more.
The exhibition by Monet of the whole series together was highly unusual but underlined the importance to him of how each painting was linked to the next and the last and that this was more than just a constant revisting to a topic, but a planned and considered approach to tackle a topic with great flexibility and thoroughness, with the intention of discovering more about the influences of nature on the objects that exist within it.
The 25 original paintings from this respected series are now distributed wildly all over North America and Europe and as such most art fans within these vast regions will have a good opportunity to go to see at least one of them in person.
In conclusion it is easy to see why the Haystacks series is respected by academics and marks an important movement in the rise of the impressionist movement as a painter had arrived who was greatly interested in experimentation within art, looking to learn as much as possible rather than finding a method and sticking religiously to it for the sake of guaranteed success and a steady income stream.