Claude Monet (1840-1926) was both the most typical and the most individual painter associated with the Impressionist movement. His long life and extraordinary work were dedicated to a pictorial exploration of the sensations which reality, and in particular landscape, offer the human eye. Monet's poplars, grain stacks, Rouen Cathedral, and water lilies paintings - among the most beloved works of the Impressionist period - were created long before the currents of the contemporary avant-grade and had an inestimable influence on the development of modern art. This book traces the life's work of one of art history's most beloved painters.