LA POSTE FRANCE issued on 17 June 1972 a First Day Cover commemorative stamp of Claude Monet's "Women in the Garden" (Femmes au jardin), which was an oil painting begun in 1866 when he was 26 years old. The setting is the garden of a property where he was renting. His companion and future wife Camille Doncieux posed for the figures. Monet finished the work indoors, and used magazine illustrations to render fashionable clothing.
Monet at this time was early in his career, experimenting with method and subject matter. His earlier paintings were successful at Paris Salons, but Women in the Garden was rejected in 1867 on the grounds of subject and narrative weakness. This piece is simply a work that was meant to fit within his theme: the interplay of light and atmosphere. His paintings established him as a leader in the emerging impressionist movement.
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