Falaises, temps gris by Claude Monet

Claude Monet
1840–1926 | French

Falaises, temps gris

Signed “Claude Monet” (lower right)
Oil on canvas

Painted along the dramatic Normandy coastline, Falaises, temps gris (Cliffs, Stormy Weather) captures Claude Monet at a moment of creative daring and technical brilliance. Executed circa 1882, the work embodies the artist’s mastery of atmosphere and motion, as shifting light and sea spray dissolve the boundary between sky and shore. Monumental in conception yet intimate in tone, the painting reflects Monet’s relentless pursuit of the ever-changing effects of nature—a hallmark that would define the Impressionist revolution.

This seascape was painted during Monet’s extended stay at Pourville-sur-Mer near Dieppe, a period he described as intoxicating in its beauty and energy. Facing the blustery Channel coast, Monet positioned himself perilously close to the surf, painting en plein air amid the wind and salt air. In Falaises, temps gris, the composition balances the solidity of the ochre and violet cliffs with the rhythmic movement of the turquoise and jade waves. The color harmonies shift subtly across the surface, dissolving forms into pure sensation and evoking both the strength and transience of the sea.

Monet’s Normandy period was crucial to his artistic development. Having grown up near Le Havre, he returned to these northern shores throughout the 1880s to explore the relationship between weather, light and reflection. Works from this series—including Falaises à Pourville and Marine, Pourville—reveal the artist’s increasing focus on serial observation, anticipating his later explorations of Rouen Cathedral and the water lilies of Giverny. The period’s importance has been affirmed by scholars and institutions alike, including the 2024–25 exhibition Monet on the Normandy Coast, organized by the Musée d’Orsay and the Städel Museum.

Acquired directly from Monet by his dealer Paul Durand-Ruel, Falaises, temps gris later entered several distinguished American collections and was exhibited in some of the earliest U.S. Impressionist exhibitions. Its enduring provenance and inclusion in major scholarly catalogues by Daniel Wildenstein attest to its rarity and significance within Monet’s oeuvre.

Dated 1882

Canvas: 20 5/8" high x 27 7/8" wide (52.39 x 70.80 cm)
Frame: 30 1/4" high x 37 3/8" wide x 3 1/2" deep (76.84 x 94.93 x 8.89 cm)

View the Dossier

Provenance:
Paul Durand-Ruel, Paris and New York, acquired c. 1888
Alden W. Kingman, New York, acquired c. 1891
Paul Durand-Ruel, New York, acquired in 1896
Cyrus J. Lawrence, New York, acquired in 1898
Sale of the above; The American Art Association, 21–22 Jan. 1910, lot 72
Paul Durand-Ruel, acquired at the above sale
Mrs. Albert L. Webster, New York, acquired from the above in 1910
Sale of the above; The American Art Association, 28–29 Jan. 1926, lot 175
Paul Durand-Ruel, acquired at the above sale
Sale of the above; Galerie Charpentier, Paris, 7–8 Dec. 1954, lot 37
Philippe Tiranty, Nice, acquired at the above sale
Private Collection, Switzerland, by 1971
Private Collection, London
Private Collection, Hong Kong
M.S. Rau, New Orleans

Exhibited:
New York, Union League Club, Monet, 12–15 Feb. 1891, no. 49 (loaned by A.W. Kingman, as The Cove)
New York, The Lotos Club, Monet, Jan. 1899, no. 12 (loaned by Cyrus J. Lawrence, as Falaises à Dieppe)
Lausanne, Fondation Pierre Gianadda, Monet, 17 June–20 Nov. 2011, no. 25, pp. 82–83 (dated c. 1882–86, illustrated)

Literature:
Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. II, Paris, 1979, no. 720, pp. 64–65 (illustrated)
Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné, vol. II, Cologne, 1996, no. 720, pp. 264, 268–269 (illustrated)