Saturday, December 16, 2006

Monet in Normandy

Last night Chris and I went on a date. We went with our friends Tosh and Amy Brinkerhoff. We went to the Monet in Normandy exhibit at the North Carolina Art Museum. It was a wonderful exhibit. I enjoy Monet and impressionism. One of my favorite paintings was the Rouen Cathedral .

It's difficult to see the detail from this picture but as I looked at the painting up close I could see a lot of texture and what looked like layers and layers of thick paint. I wondered how he could stand close enough to the painting to paint the picture and have it turn out like it did. Close up it is difficult to tell what it is but from a distance it is a beautiful painting. I also liked a few other paintings.
Terrace at St. Adresse is one of Monet's most famous paintings and the story goes that as a young artist Monet went to Paris and met and fell in love with a model named Camille. Camille got pregnant and when Monet told his father about their situation he was very upset and told Monet that he should not abandon the woman. After Camille had Monet's baby they got married. In this painting the two people sitting down are Monet's father and Aunt. They are both looking at the couple with judgement. The couple is not named but there are two empty chairs in the painting suggesting the couple is connected to Monet's father and aunt.

It took us about an hour to see a video about Monet and go through the exhibit. I wasn't sure I would enjoy it because I have been sick the past few days. On the way to the museum I felt ill but after a little fresh air and some potato chips I felt much better. After the museum we went to an Italian restaurant. I had the cannelloni and Chris had meatloaf. We shared peach cobbler for dessert--should have ordered the chocolate bomb.

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