The Yellow Irises 1917

Claude Monet made *The Yellow Irises* with oil on canvas; imagine Monet in his garden at Giverny, wielding his brush like a conductor with a baton! Look at those thick strokes of blue and green; they build up this shimmering wall. I wonder what Monet was thinking as he laid down those confident swipes of paint. I can imagine him wanting to capture not just the irises, but the entire experience of being among them, the smells and the light. And those yellow blooms, like bursts of sunshine against the cooler tones, feel like a little party in the garden. The way Monet layered the paint reminds me of Cézanne's blocky brushstrokes, or even some of the later Abstract Expressionists. Each stroke is so physical, so present. It's like he's saying, "Here, world, this is what it feels like to be alive, to see, to paint!" We’re all in conversation, and it is so beautiful and inspiring.