Houses of Parlilament, Sunlight Effect 1901

Claude Monet made this painting, Houses of Parliament, Sunlight Effect, with oil on canvas. For me, it's all about how Monet found a way to make a solid, monumental building dissolve into an atmospheric soup. Look at how he handles the surface, short brushstrokes, one next to another, like weaving or knitting. It's so satisfying when you realize the buildings are built from nothing but fleeting moments of light. The overall feeling is so dreamy and soft, like a memory fading at the edges, a memory that you can almost touch. Then there's the water at the bottom, all those horizontal marks dancing with light. It gives the painting movement, it feels so alive. It reminds me of Turner, who was equally obsessed with capturing the sublime effects of light and weather. Both artists show us that a painting doesn’t have to be photo-realistic to capture the essence of a place. It just has to capture the feeling.