Saint Louis Art Museum
March 2023
March 25–June 25, 2023 Offering a fresh view of two of the most experimental painters of the 20th century, Monet/Mitchell: Painting the French Landscape is the first exhibition in the United States to examine the complex dialogue between the work of the French Impressionist Claude Monet and the American Abstract Expressionist Joan Mitchell.
The exhibition explores the ways in which Monet and Mitchell engaged with the French landscape. Monet spent his final decades in rural Giverny, some 50 miles to the northwest of Paris, while, from 1968 until 1992, Mitchell lived at nearby Vétheuil, overlooking a house once inhabited by the French painter. Both artists addressed similar themes of trees, earth, water, and flowers as well as the inspiration of their own gardens. The exhibition explores the connections, both in subject matter and technique, that Mitchell shared with Monet. It also shows how her compositional formats, vibrant color, and gestural brushwork offer fascinating parallels with Monet’s. Monet/Mitchell will present 24 paintings, 12 by each artist. Often monumental in scale and overwhelming in impact, these works highlight the fascination both painters had for expansive, panoramic formats. The exhibition will be accompanied by a scholarly catalog, published by Hirmer, with contributions from Simon Kelly and curators from the Fondation Louis Vuitton and the Musée Marmottan Monet. Monet/Mitchell is curated in St. Louis by Simon Kelly, curator of modern and contemporary art, and presented in partnership with the Fondation Louis Vuitton and the Musée Marmottan Monet. The Saint Louis Art Museum will celebrate Monet/Mitchell with a free, public preview starting at 4 pm on Friday, March 24, 2023. Learn more at the Saint Louis Art Museum.