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Cats. 1–10 Early Caricatures Cat. 11  Boy in the Country, 1857 Cat. 12  Cliffs and Sea, Sainte-Adresse, c. 1865 Cat. 13  The Beach at Sainte-Adresse, 1867 Cat. 14  On the Bank of the Seine, Bennecourt, 1868 Cat. 15  The Artist’s House at Argenteuil, 1873 Cat. 16  Arrival of the Normandy Train, Gare Saint-Lazare, 1877 Cat. 17  Apples and Grapes, 1880 Cat. 18  Boats Lying at Low Tide at Fécamp, 1881 Cat. 19  Cliff Walk at Pourville, 1882 Cat. 20  Bordighera, 1884 Cat. 21  Étretat: The Beach and the Falaise d’Amont, 1885 Cats. 22–23  Étretat, 1885 Cat. 24  Rocks at Port-Goulphar, Belle-Île, 1886 Cat. 25  The Petite Creuse River, 1889 Cat. 26  Poppy Field (Giverny), 1890–91 Cats. 27–33  Stacks of Wheat, 1890/91 Cat. 34  Sandvika, Norway, 1895 Cat. 35  The Customs House at Varengeville, 1897 Cat. 36  Branch of the Seine near Giverny (Mist), 1897 Cat. 37  Water Lily Pond, 1900 Cats. 38–41  London Cats. 42–43  Vétheuil, 1901 Cat. 44  Water Lilies, 1906 Cat. 45  Venice, Palazzo Dario, 1908 Cat. 46  Irises, 1914/17 Cat. 47  Water Lily Pond, 1917/19

At the top, a pale sky shifts from light yellow to light blue. Below it, a distant band of low hills and clustered trees runs across the width in dark green and purple tones. In the middle ground, two rounded haystacks sit in a field: a large one on the right and a smaller one on the left, both reddish-brown with touches of purple. The foreground field is mottled with green, blue, and pink patches, with long shadows stretching toward the lower edge.
Cat. 27

Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer)[1]
1890/91[2]
Oil on canvas; 60 × 100.5 cm (23 5/8 × 39 9/16 in.)
Signed and dated: Claude Monet 91 (lower left, in orange-red paint)
The Art Institute of Chicago, gift of Arthur M. Wood, Sr., in memory of Pauline Palmer Wood, 1985.1103

Top area shows a pale sky that shifts from light yellow on the right to soft blue on the left, above a dark green tree line across the horizon. Below, a grassy field in muted greens and purples fills the middle and foreground. Two rounded, cone-like haystacks in warm pink-orange tones sit in the field: a large one in the right foreground and a smaller one to the left at mid-distance, with the larger roughly twice the size of the smaller.
Cat. 28

Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn)[3]
1890/91[4]
Oil on canvas; 65.8 × 101 cm (27 7/8 × 39 3/4 in.)
Signed and dated: Claude Monet 91 (lower left, in red paint)
The Art Institute of Chicago, Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Larned Coburn Memorial Collection, 1933.444

Top third shows a warm orange to pink sky that fades to pale purple near the horizon. Below it, a snowy field in cool blues and purples fills the scene, with two rounded haystacks: a large cone-shaped stack near center-right in the foreground and a smaller one to its left and farther back. The stacks are brown with blue-white patches and sit on blue shadows around their bases. No people or buildings are present.
Cat. 29

Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect)[5]
1890/91[6]
Oil on canvas; 65.3 × 100.4 cm (25 11/16 × 39 1/2 in.)
Signed and dated: Claude Monet 91 (lower right, name in reddish-brown paint, date in greenish-brown paint)
The Art Institute of Chicago, Potter Palmer Collection, 1922.431

Top area shows a pale gray sky with a small, faint yellow sun near the upper center. Across the middle runs a dark blue and purple tree line, with a few small gray buildings on the right side. The foreground is a snow-covered field, and a very large reddish-brown haystack sits left of center; it appears much larger than the distant houses, with a few green patches of grass showing near its base.
Cat. 30

Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day)[7]
1890/91[8]
Oil on canvas; 66 × 93 cm (26 × 36 5/8 in.)
Signed and dated: Claude Monet 91 (lower right, in light reddish-brown paint)
The Art Institute of Chicago, Mr. and Mrs. Martin A. Ryerson Collection, 1933.1155

A large conical haystack in brown and reddish tones stands in the foreground slightly left of center, its sides lightly dusted with gray-white snow. Behind it stretches a flat field with patchy white snow and streaks of brown and green earth. Farther back, a dense band of bare trees runs across the scene, with low blue hills beyond and a pale gray sky at the top.
Cat. 31

Stack of Wheat[9]
1890/91[10]
Oil on canvas; 65.8 × 92.3 cm (25 15/16 × 36 3/8 in.)
Signed and dated: Claude Monet 91 (lower left, in brownish paint)
The Art Institute of Chicago, restricted gift of the Searle Family Trust; Major Acquisitions Centennial Endowment; through prior acquisitions of the Mr. and Mrs. Martin A. Ryerson and Potter Palmer collections; through prior bequest of Jerome Friedman, 1983.29

Top area shows a pale yellow band near the horizon fading into light purple and gray, with a dark green-purple tree line stretching across the middle. Center-left foreground holds a large, rounded haystack in red-brown, the dominant form with darker tones near its base. Lower half is a flat field mottled with pink, blue, and tan, and near the right mid-distance sits a small low building partly obscured by the tree line.
Cat. 32

Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset)[11]
1890/91[12]
Oil on canvas; 64.4 × 92.5 cm (25 3/8 × 36 7/16 in.)
Signed and dated: Claude Monet 91 (lower left, in light red paint)
The Art Institute of Chicago, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Daniel C. Searle, 1983.166

Top area is mostly light beige with faint gray streaks. Across the middle, two dark gray, roughly conical mounds appear, the larger one on the right and a smaller one to the left, with a row of soft, rounded gray shapes stretching behind them. Bottom area shows light beige ground with scattered gray marks and darker shadows; in the lower left, a cursive signature reads “Claude Monet.” No people are present.
Cat. 33

Stacks of Wheat[13]
1891
Black chalk, with stumping and frottage, on cream laid paper (discolored to tan), laid down on cardboard; 182 × 254 mm (primary/secondary supports)
Signed: Claude Monet (recto, lower left, in black chalk)
The Art Institute of Chicago, gift of Dorothy Braude Edinburg to the Harry B. and Bessie K. Braude Memorial Collection, 2013.986

A Pivotal Moment

The year 1890 marked significant milestones for Claude Monet’s personal and professional career.[14] In November he purchased the house in Giverny he had rented since 1883; the property and gardens there, which he went on to manicure and expand, would be a life-long source of inspiration. It was also in 1890 that the established leader of the Impressionists began work on his Stacks of Wheat.[15] Although the concept of painting in series had occupied him for some time, this group marked a pivotal shift in his practice. Moreover, he established a new way of presenting his pictures when, in May 1891, fifteen Stacks featured in an exhibition at Durand-Ruel.[16]1

Monet executed the approximately twenty-five canvases that make up the series proper—six of which are now in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago—likely between late August or early September 1890 and February 1891.[17] As his work on the paintings drew to a close he made two drawings on the theme. He found his motif, with its hilly, tree-dotted backdrop, in a field adjacent to his property (fig. 1). The compositional placement of the stacks was of interest to Monet, as was his concern for getting their shapes just right. But perhaps more importantly, their form in the landscape served as a vehicle for formal experimentation: a chance to explore the enveloppe, the ephemeral and constantly changing atmospheric conditions that transformed his chosen scene.[18]2

Black-and-white rural scene with an open field in the foreground. Midground features several conical haystacks, including a large one near center-left with support poles, and a row of low, light-colored houses behind them. A dense line of trees stands farther back, with low hills stretching across the background under a pale sky.

Fig. 1


Photograph of the view from Monet’s second studio, c. 1905, from L’art et les artistes, Dec. 1905, p. 90.

Depicting “Instantaneity”

In what may be Monet’s earliest account of his work on the Stacks of Wheat, he touched on key points that distinguished the series from his previous efforts. “I’m working away at a series of different effects (of stacks), but at this time of year, the sun sets so quickly that I can’t keep up with it,” Monet explained to his friend Gustave Geffroy on October 7, 1890. “I’m becoming so slow in my work that it makes me despair, but the further I go, the better I see that it takes a great deal of work to succeed in rendering what I want to render: ‘instantaneity,’ above all the enveloppe, the same light diffused over everything, and I’m more than ever disgusted at things that come easily, at the first attempt.”[19]3

The fact that Monet called his new paintings a “series” appears to be a tantalizing self-reflection as he embarked on what would be a transformation in his practice, yet this was by no means the first time he had applied the label to his work. In fact, by the mid-1870s, Monet used it regularly to describe his versions of paintings on the same motif, such as his views of the Gare Saint-Lazare (see cat. 16 [W440]).[20] A more significant point lies instead in his confession that his recent paintings did not come quickly or easily to him—and that he welcomed the challenge. If he hoped to depict “instantaneity,” somewhat ironically, it would take time. Tellingly, too, he worked up the Stacks of Wheat as a group, partially en plein air, partially in his studio. Soon this novel methodology—selecting isolated motifs to paint repeatedly under different atmospheric conditions—would become his typical working method.4

As early as 1892, Monet reflected on this change in his practice, stating that his new aim was to explore “more serious qualities” in his art.[21] But, as many art historians have noted, Monet’s choice of wheat stacks and other motifs, while formal exercises, often resonated deeply with the social context in which he lived and worked.[22] After a period of extensive travel in the 1880s, Monet’s age, financial security and home ownership, seem to have reinvigorated his interest in depicting nearby rural themes.[23] In picking the stacks of wheat as a subject, however, as Impressionist scholar Robert Herbert has argued, Monet tapped into the motif’s nuanced meaning within the local community at the time. “It is not a ‘haystack’ at all, but a grain stack,” Herbert clarified. “Haystacks . . . have slightly irregular, less architectural shapes. Grain stacks are built more carefully, their shocks first tied together and then actually thatched to keep the rain out . . . We are therefore not looking at ordinary hay, but at Stacks of Wheat (to give them their real title), wheat which was literally the wealth of its owners.”[24] Later, Paul Tucker noted that Monet also connected with the patriotism and nostalgia that endeared images of the fertile and abundant French countryside to French society in the second half of the nineteenth century.[25]5

Promoting and Exhibiting Stacks of Wheat

Monet worked to promote the Stacks of Wheat in advance of the exhibition.[26] Early in 1891, he agreed to provide Octave Mirbeau with illustrations for an article in L’art dans les deux mondes.[27] Mirbeau had been deeply affected by his experience of the works: “We couldn’t tear ourselves away from contemplation of your Stacks, whose fair dream seems to expand, deepen to infinity.”[28] He assured his friend that he would stay true to his subject: “Do believe me that in this article, in prophesizing the Monet you will become, I’ll be careful not to forget the one you are.”[29] After the text appeared in print, however, Mirbeau reproached the publishers (who had held back proofs he wanted to amend).[30] Nonetheless, this does not detract from the fact that the article marked an important moment in the critical reception of the works; the drawing that accompanied the text (see fig. 2, now in the National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo) is remarkably similar to the Art Institute’s sheet.6

Across the top, a light tan background with faint gray lines is visible, and a thin horizontal band of small rounded forms runs left to right near the center. In the foreground, two cone‑shaped mounds rest on open ground—the larger on the right and a smaller one to its left—both in dark gray shading, with a wide, dark shadow extending to the right of the larger mound. Bottom left contains a short line of cursive text. Colors are limited to tan with dark gray lines and shading.

Fig. 2


Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926). Haystacks, 1890/91. Charcoal on paper; 23.3 × 29.2 cm (9 3/16 × 11 1/2 in.). The National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo, D.1966-0001.

Monet based the Tokyo drawing on a painting of 1890 (now in the Hill-Stead Museum, Farmington, Conn. [fig. 3]). The Hill-Stead painting may well have prompted the Art Institute sheet, too, though it is difficult to establish which of the drawings came first. They are remarkably similar in detail, but it seems logical that the Chicago sheet was the earlier attempt, given that Monet—who made very few drawings at this stage of his career—would probably have been loath to make two studies if he had been satisfied with the first. Furthermore, in the Tokyo work the more abstract background lends prominence to the stacks. This simplification would have suited the purposes of reproduction, although Monet’s rendition of trees and buildings is perhaps more faithful to the painted composition.[31]
7

At the top, a pale blue sky fades into a low band of light blue hills. Below that, a strip of light green trees runs across the scene. In the foreground, a yellow and pink field holds two rounded, cone-shaped haystacks—one large on the right and a smaller one on the left—with dark blue‑green shadows pooled beside them.

Fig. 3


Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926). Grainstacks, in Bright Sunlight, 1890. Oil on canvas; 58.4 × 96.5 cm (23 × 38 in.). Hill-Stead Museum, Farmington, Conn.

That Monet was challenged by the task of creating a representative image of Stacks of Wheat for print purposes is perhaps unsurprising. Monet’s painted images are characterized by their subtle variations of tone and their complex, textured surfaces, whereas black-and-white illustrations with distinct, clearly defined contrasts of light and dark tend to reproduce best. Monet adopted a monochrome palette but, by using soft black chalk in his drawing, avoided harsh contours. To mimic his distinctive stippled brushwork, he used a technique called frottage whereby the sheet is placed on an object and then rubbed to register the object’s textured surface. He outlined the stacks with wavering strokes and used stumping to work the chalk into the paper, creating an image with its own unique appeal.8

For most commenters on the first exhibition of the Stacks of Wheat paintings at Durand-Ruel in May 1891, it was the installation that garnered discussion. In the preface to the accompanying catalogue, Gustave Geffroy noted that “the grouping together of fifteen canvases of haystacks, each representing the same subject, with a rendition of the same landscape, is an extraordinarily victorious artistic demonstration . . . [Monet] conveys the sensation of the ephemeral instant that comes into existence and never again returns, and at the same time, he constantly evokes in each of his canvases—through the weight, the power that comes out from the curve of the horizon, the roundness of the terrestrial globe—the course of the earth through space.”[32] Dutch critic Willem G. C. Byvanck noted that the individual paintings “acquire their full value by comparison [to the others] and in the succession of the full series.”[33] Little is known about the exact arrangement of the canvases in the show, for there are no extant photographs to confirm whether the works were hung sequentially by season, by size, or by another ordering principle. But what is known, from these accounts and others, is that fifteen Stacks of Wheat were shown together at Durand-Ruel’s gallery in one small room, a new strategy for the exhibition of Monet’s works.[34] In addition, two of Monet’s 1886 figure paintings of a woman holding a parasol were reportedly hung above the row of Stacks; elsewhere in the room, Monet included four field pictures from 1890 and one painting from the Creuse series (see cat. 25).[35]
9

Assessing the Series

The Art Institute holds the world’s largest number of Stacks, which offers an unprecedented opportunity to compare technical findings and thereby rethink long-standing assessments of the series. Scholars have sought to identify an underlying logic to the Stacks of Wheat series. This is a particularly difficult task since, as the art historian Paul Tucker has noted, Monet often manipulated public accounts of his working method—and nowhere more so than with regard to the Stacks of Wheat.[36] Tucker has written that Monet “clearly wanted to establish the fact that he was not a programmatic artist, that he operated on instinct rather than intellect, and that he simply applied those instincts to the dictates of nature.”[37]10

Geffroy’s preface in the Durand-Ruel exhibition catalogue, together with Monet’s atmospherically and seasonally precise titles for the works in the show, has led to the misconception that the paintings “chart the passage of the sun across the stacks with such specificity that they collectively form a kind of chronometer.”[38] As mentioned above, art historians noted long ago that Monet’s Stacks of Wheat were not executed quickly and on the spot but were rather the result of multiple sessions, with the artist making calculated and careful changes in his studio.[39] Scholars have noted that underlying brushwork does not match up to forms on the surface, and pentimenti in numerous paintings reveal that Monet even moved the locations of his stacks within compositions.[40]11

Recent technical examinations of the Art Institute’s six Stacks paintings support these contentions. All show evidence that Monet made changes to the paintings over the course of multiple working sessions. In Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (cat. 27 [W1269]), Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (cat. 28 [W1270]), and Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (cat. 32 [W1284]), for example, Monet adjusted the shapes and sizes of the stacks and the placement of the horizon and houses in the background. Of these three, Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) shows the most dramatic change: X-ray and transmitted-infrared imaging reveal that Monet radically reduced the width of the stack (fig. 4). In some canvases, like Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (fig. 5) (cat. 29 [W1278]), Monet changed the placement of the stacks significantly, while in others, like Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (cat. 30 [W1281]), he removed one whole stack entirely (fig. 6).12

Top area shows a wide band of cloudy, streaked grays stretching across the width. In the center foreground sits a large cone-shaped mound in medium to dark gray, with lighter gray patches along its right side and base. The ground around it is uneven and textured in mixed grays, leveling out toward a faint horizontal line in the mid-distance. Small, evenly spaced tick marks run along all four edges.
X-Ray
From top to bottom, a thick dark vertical bar intersects a dark horizontal bar across the middle, forming a cross that divides the view into four rectangles. Within each section are mottled black, white, and gray textures; the top areas are lighter gray with streak-like patterns, while the bottom areas are darker and denser. The intersection area has a concentrated bright patch surrounded by darker tones, and the outer edges fade toward solid black.
Transmitted Infrared (1.0–1.1 µm)
At the top, a pale sky shifts from soft yellow along the horizon to light gray-lavender higher up. A dark green band of distant trees stretches across the middle. In the left-center foreground, a large conical haystack in reddish brown is the largest element. The ground is a flat field mottled with pink, lavender, and blue tones, with two small low rectangular shapes in the middle-right distance.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Transmitted Infrared
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 4

X-ray, transmitted-infrared light  (Fuji, 1.0–1.1 µm) and natural light overlay of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) (cat. 32) showing the reduction in the width of the stack. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166. Interactive image.

At the top, a dark orange sky stretches across the width and meets a dim horizon. In the center foreground, a large conical mound sits slightly right of center, colored dark brown and blue with spots of red-orange. To its left, a smaller conical mound of similar colors stands close by. The flat ground from foreground to background is mostly bluish-purple with scattered warm orange highlights.
Transmitted Light
Top area shows a cloudy sky in light gray with scattered white streaks. Across the middle are three rounded mounds, the largest centered and two smaller to its left and right, all in darker gray with lighter areas near their tops. The foreground is a broad field in medium to dark gray with irregular patches that merge into the mounds; no people or animals are present.
X-Ray
A snow-covered field contains two conical stacks; a large one occupies the right foreground and a smaller one sits farther back to the left. The ground is bluish-purple with patches of pink, and the distant horizon shows low, hazy blue shapes. The sky at the top is orange and yellow blending into pink, and the stacks show cool blue-violet shading.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 5

X-ray, transmitted-infrared (Fuji, 1.0–1.1 µm), and natural-light images of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing that the placement of the stacks changed significantly. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431. Interactive image.

Rendered in shades of gray, the top third shows a light gray sky, and a dark, uneven horizontal band runs across the center. In the foreground, a large conical stack sits left of center, occupying much of the lower half. To its right is a smaller, low oval stack in the midground, and the ground is light gray with scattered darker patches.
Infrared Reflectogam (1515 nm)
At the top, a pale gray-pink sky holds a small, faint sun. Across the middle, a dark blue and purple treeline runs left to right, with a few small, snow-covered buildings clustered on the right. In the foreground, a large rounded mound of reddish-brown hay sits left of center on a wide white field with light blue and green patches, appearing much larger than the distant houses.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
Infrared Reflectogram
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 6

Infrared reflectogram (Surface Optics, 1515 nm) and natural-light image of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) (cat. 30) showing that one stack was removed during the painting process. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155. Interactive image.

Perhaps even more significantly, two of the Art Institute’s paintings, Stacks of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) and Stack of Wheat (cat. 31 [W1283]), both executed on no. 30 landscape (paysage) standard-size canvases, may have initially featured stacks in a different season or may have been painted over different compositions altogether. The two paintings reveal that, in initial layers, the landscape was at least partially green in places (fig. 7 and fig. 8), suggesting that the scenes did not originate as snowy ones from the winter of 1890–91 but rather from an earlier time in the year when the grass was still green. Losses in Stack of Wheat also reveal areas in which a vibrant red color appears. In each of these paintings, Monet covered the earlier composition with white paint that obscured the forms and textures of the painting underneath. The palette of the earlier layers suggests that these paintings could have begun as one of the paintings from summer 1890, featuring the oats, hay, or poppies that surrounded Monet’s property at Giverny (see cat. 26 [W1253]), that were put aside by the end of August when Monet began his Stacks of Wheat canvases. The similarity in palette and canvas size indicates that Stacks of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) and Stack of Wheat may have begun in a fashion that was more analogous to works like Monet’s Prairie à Giverny (Prairie at Giverny) (fig. 9 [W1247]) or Champ d’avoine (Oat Field) (fig. 10 [W1259]).[41]
13

Top left shows a scale bar labeled 2.0 mm. From top to bottom, a light purple area with raised ridges covers the upper portion, transitioning into vertical bands: tan and pale purple on the left, a central pale green strip, and tan mixed with white on the right. Near the bottom are tan and white areas with small darker green patches, and thin dark lines cross several regions; the vertical bands range from under a millimeter to about a millimeter wide based on the scale.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 13
Top area shows a cloudy sky in blues and purples. Center-left sits a small building with a sloped roof against low hills, and below it a wide, snow-covered field in white with light pink and blue shadows. Most of the overall frame is solid black, with the scene limited to the lower-left quadrant. The building appears small compared to the broad field in the foreground.
Detail Location

Fig. 7

Photomicrograph of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) (cat. 30) showing bright-green paint from an earlier painting stage. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Top center shows a thin black scale bar labeled “5.0 mm.” Below it, a textured surface has irregular ridges and streaks of pale purple and white, with scattered patches of medium green across the middle area. The lower third contains denser bands of blue and purple, while white streaks cut through and small pits and hairline cracks appear near the center and left side. Elements vary from tiny specks to narrow bands a few millimeters long.
Monet 83.29 MIC 33
- Most of the frame is solid black, with a smaller rectangular scene in the bottom-left corner. - Inside that scene, pale blue, white, and gray water fills the left and center, extending from the bottom toward the upper left; a steep bank or hillside in dark red with touches of purple and green occupies the right side. - A small black-outlined square sits over the water near the left side. - The landscape occupies a small portion of the overall frame, with the black background taking most of the space.
Detail Location

Fig. 8

Photomicrograph of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) (cat. 31) showing bright-green paint from an earlier painting stage. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

At the top, a pale blue sky with soft pink clouds stretches across. Below it, a continuous line of dark green trees fills the middle, with a taller tree rising near the right edge. In the foreground, a bright green meadow is scattered with small white and light pink flowers. Near the center-left sits a rounded reddish-brown mound in front of the trees, and a low blue-gray band appears in the far right distance.

Fig. 9


Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926). Prairie à Giverny, 1890. Oil on canvas; 65 × 92 cm (25 5/8 × 36 1/4 in.). Fukushima Prefectural Museum of Art, Fukushima, Japan.

At the top, a pale blue sky fills the background. Below it, a line of medium-sized green trees stretches across the distance, with a much larger, darker tree mass rising along the right edge. In the foreground, a wide field of tall grasses spans the width, showing soft greens, yellows, and purples with many small red flowers scattered throughout; no people or buildings are visible.

Fig. 10


Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926). Champ d’avoine (Oat Field), 1890. Oil on canvas; 66 × 92.6 cm (26 × 36 7/16 in.). Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art, University of Florida, Gainesville.

A Different Look at the Series

Recognizing that Monet made such extensive changes to his paintings seems to have discouraged some art historians from theorizing any internal logic to the Stacks paintings. In his groundbreaking catalogue of Monet’s series paintings from the 1890s, Paul Tucker noted that the Stacks of Wheat paintings “are not all the same dimensions” and that “Monet clearly did not feel obliged to choose a particular-size canvas for a particular effect, season, or stack configuration.”[42] New technical evidence from the Art Institute’s paintings, however, suggest that we revisit this theory as possible patterns in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat may, in fact, be discerned.14

Monet consistently used four canvas sizes for his Stacks of Wheat paintings. Five paintings are executed on a non-standard-size format (60 × 100 cm; fig. 11);[43] seven are painted on standard-size no. 40 marine format canvases (65 × 100 cm; fig. 12);[44] nine are on standard-size no. 30 paysage format canvases; (65 × 92 cm; fig. 13)[45] and four are executed on standard-size no. 30 figure format canvases (73 × 92 cm; fig. 14).[46] Notwithstanding some exceptions, basic patterns emerge at first glance: four out of the five non-standard-size canvases (60 × 100 cm) feature two separated stacks of different sizes;[47] six out of the seven works on no. 40 marine size canvases feature two stacks, although their placement is not consistent;[48] the majority of the paintings on no. 30 paysage canvases depict single stacks;[49] and finally, the standard no. 30 figure format canvases were reserved for those paintings depicting extremely close-up views of stacks that extend beyond the right or left edges of the picture plane.15

Figs. 11–14

Five panels, read left-to-right and top-to-bottom, each show conical haystacks in open fields with a distant band of trees and low hills. On the left column, the top, middle, and bottom panels each contain two haystacks—one larger mound to the right or center and a smaller one to the left—set on ground that shifts from green to pink to bluish, with blue‑green horizons. The top-right panel shows two brown haystacks in a white snowy field, the larger at right capped with snow, against a gray‑blue background. The bottom-right panel is a close view of a single large haystack dominating the foreground, on pale frosty ground with a faint horizon.

Fig. 11


Five paintings were executed on a non-standard-size format (60 × 100 cm), clockwise from top left: Grainstacks at the End of the Summer, Morning Effect (1891; Musée d’Orsay, Paris), Grainstacks, Snow Effect (1891; Shelburne [Vt.] Museum), Grainstack in the Sunlight (1891; Kunsthaus Zürich; © 2014 Kunsthaus Zürich. All rights reserved), Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (cat. 27), and Grainstacks in Bright Sunlight (1890; Hill-Stead Museum, Farmington, Conn.).

A grid of seven pictures shows open fields with one or two cone-shaped haystacks, distant trees, and wide sky. Top-left: two stacks, smaller at far left and larger to the right, on pale yellow ground under bright blue sky; top-right: two stacks in gray tones on light ground. Middle-left: two stacks in muted pink and purple with a dark green tree line; middle-right: two stacks on light, whitish ground with a pale peach sky. Lower-left: one large stack slightly right of center with green grass and shrubs; lower-right: two dark stacks on bluish ground with an orange sky; bottom center: one stack on speckled yellow and lavender ground with a soft pink sky.

Fig. 12


Seven paintings were executed on standard-size no. 40 marine format canvases (65 × 100 cm), clockwise from top left: Grainstacks in the Sunlight, Morning Effect (1891; private collection), Grainstacks in Winter (1891; private collection, Switzerland), Grainstacks in the Morning, Snow Effect (1891; J. Paul Getty Museum, Malibu, Calif.; digital image courtesy of the Getty’s Open Content Program), Stacks of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (cat. 29), Grainstack, Sun in the Mist (1891; Minneapolis Institute of Arts), Grainstacks in the Sunlight, Midday (1890; Australian National Gallery, Canberra; Bridgeman Images), and Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (cat. 28).

A 3-by-3 grid of nine scenes shows one or two conical haystacks in a flat field, viewed from a similar distance. Where two stacks appear (top-left and top-middle), the nearer stack is large in the left foreground with a smaller one behind it to the right; the other panels show a single large stack near the center or slightly left. Colors shift across the grid: the top row uses pale blues and purples, ending with a warm yellow-brown stack; the middle row moves from light blue and tan to a vivid red‑orange stack against a dark banded horizon, then to cooler blue‑lavender; the bottom row goes from muted brown‑green to warm orange under a yellow sky. The bottom-right panel is black and white, showing one dark stack on a light field with low hills in the distance.

Fig. 13


Nine paintings were executed on standard-size no. 30 paysage format canvases (65 × 92 cm), left to right, top to bottom: Grainstacks, White Frost Effect (1891; National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh; photograph: National Galleries of Scotland, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais/Art Resource, NY), Grainstacks, Winter Effect (1891; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; image copyright © The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Image source: Art Resource, NY), Grainstack in the Morning, Snow Effect (1891; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Mass.; photograph © 2014 Museum of Fine Arts, Boston), Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (cat. 30), Grainstack at Sunset, Winter (1891; private collection, Great Britain; Bridgeman Images), Stack of Wheat (cat. 31), Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (cat. 32), Grainstack (1891), and Grainstack in the Sunlight, Snow Effect (1891; private collection, France).

Four images arranged in a 2x2 grid show conical haystacks in open fields. Top-left is in black, white, and gray: a very large haystack fills the left foreground, a dark path curves to the right, and low trees line the distant horizon. Top-right has a large haystack on the right in deep red against a purple field, a dark blue line of trees across the middle, and a yellow‑orange sky. Bottom-left places a large haystack on the left with a smaller mound and small trees at center-right under a pale yellow‑pink sky; bottom-right shows a right-side haystack in dark green and red before a pink‑blue field with a light yellow sky and a faint, low horizon.

Fig. 14


Four paintings were executed on standard-size no. 30 figure format canvases (73 × 92 cm), clockwise from top left: Grainstacks, Last Sunrays (1890; private collection, France), Grainstack (1891; private collection, Switzerland), Grainstacks (1891; private collection, United States), and Grainstack at Sunset (1891; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; photograph © 2014 Museum of Fine Arts, Boston).

While certain anomalies to these patterns are visible on the final canvases, features underneath the surfaces of these paintings must be further explored to advance the possibility that Monet might have started the Stacks more programmatically. For example, the Art Institute’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) complicates the suggestion that the no. 30 paysage canvases could have been primarily reserved for single-stack compositions. While infrared reflectography shows that Monet did at one time have a second stack located to the right of the stack in the final canvas, it is not clear that that second stack was included from the very beginning. X-ray shows that the landscape once extended beneath the stack, possibly indicating that the work started as a single-stack work before a second stack was added and later painted out.16

While most of the no. 40 marine size canvases feature two stacks,[50] those in Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) [cat. 29] as well as Grainstacks in the Sunlight, Midday ([W1271]) are positioned differently from the others.[51] Technical analysis of the former, however, shows that originally Monet did have the two stacks placed much more in line with those in the other pictures in this group. Research has also shown that the stack extending past the edge of the left side of the canvas in Grainstacks in the Sunlight, Midday had also been moved from a position that looked more like the other pictures in the group.[52]
17

Variations on the Theme

Much has been written about the Stacks of Wheat as a unified group, and rightly so, for, as John House argues, “In exhibiting his series, Monet explored the possibilities of large pictorial ensembles, with the individual canvas an integral part of a larger entity . . . the cumulative effect he sought in his exhibitions began to affect the ways in which he executed his canvases, whereas before he had finished them piecemeal and without thought of establishing such an inner coherence. As much as the individual paintings themselves, the ensembles of his exhibitions became the end product towards which he worked.”[53] While it is important—as House notes—that we consider Monet’s execution of the series as a group, the Art Institute’s analysis of its six Stacks of Wheat suggests that we should not ignore the complexities of the individual paintings. The techniques Monet used are tremendously varied and reveal the extent to which he labored over each work.18

All of the Art Institute’s Stacks began on canvases that were probably commercially prepared and primed with an off-white ground. Technical examination shows that Monet exploited the tone of the ground to different extents. In Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer), for example, Monet used open brushwork throughout the painting, allowing areas of the ground to be exposed (fig. 15); in Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) and Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) the paint layers are more densely built up, and even in areas that are very thinly painted, the color of the ground is mostly obscured (fig. 16 and fig. 17).[54] Also of particular note are canvases like Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer), Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn), and Stack of Wheat, in which Monet built up the sky using undulating zigzag strokes, much like those that he would also use to execute his Sandvika (cat. 34); in other Stacks, these distinctive strokes in the sky are not visible. Paintings like Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) juxtapose thick impasto with very thinly painted passages and sometimes use paint that appears to have been manipulated by the artist to increase the fluidity (see Technical Report), while others like Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) incorporate very little impasto, resulting in a brushmarked but relatively flat surface. Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) is significantly different from the other Stacks paintings since Monet built up the surface of the foreground from dark to light. Whereas the other works were typically laid in with subdued tones and then built up using more intense color, in this canvas the artist also wiped or scraped areas of the canvas in an effort to expose underlying paint layers. This sample of the varying techniques Monet employed in the Art Institute’s Stacks. The Art Institute’s technical studies of its Stacks paintings pose more questions than answers, but one thing is clear: the varying techniques Monet employed in the works illustrate their incredibly experimental quality. The complex surface of each canvas suggests that the paintings in the series are not as homogeneous as is often assumed.
19

Figs. 15–17

Top area shows soft patches of lavender, pink, and light blue. Center transitions to broader areas of green, light purple, and peach with touches of teal. Near the bottom, a line of small red, cursive-like marks runs left to right, much smaller than the surrounding color patches.

Fig. 15


Detail of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) (cat. 27) showing the open brushwork that leaves areas of the ground exposed. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

A broad area of blue and purple fills most of the center and left. Toward the top right, the colors shift to peach, orange, and light yellow. Along the bottom, cooler blue tones continue, with a small curved patch of muted red-brown at the lower right.

Fig. 16


Detail of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) (cat. 29) showing the thicker application of paint covering the ground. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Top area shows a mix of muted pink, lavender, and green patches, with a larger orange-red section near the upper right corner. The middle region is mostly gray-lavender with scattered small pink and light green shapes. The lower third features brighter greens mixed with purples and pinks, with denser green areas toward the bottom left and along the bottom edge; no distinct figures or objects are visible.

Fig. 17


Detail of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) (cat. 28) showing the thicker application of paint covering the ground. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Jill Shaw
20

Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer), 1890/91 (Cat. 27)

Technical Summary

Claude Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) was painted on a non-standard-size, pre-primed linen canvas. The ground consists of a single, off-white layer. A warp-thread match was detected with seven other Monet paintings from the Art Institute’s collection: The Petite Creuse River (cat. 25 [W1231], inv. 1922.432); Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (cat. 28 [W1270], inv. 1933.444); Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (cat. 29 [W1278], inv. 1922.431); Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (cat. 32 [W1284], inv. 1983.166); Sandvika, Norway (cat. 34 [W1397], inv. 1961.790); Branch of the Seine near Giverny (Mist) (cat. 36 [W1475], inv. 1933.1156); and Water Lily Pond (cat. 37 [W1628], inv. 1933.441), suggesting that the fabric for these paintings came from the same bolt of material.[55] The painting has a rich and varied surface texture. This includes areas of open brushwork where thick strokes of impasto are juxtaposed with very thinly painted passages that leave the ground and canvas texture visible. Other areas consist of more fluid paint applications that appear to have been modified by the artist through the addition of extra medium to the tube paint. Final touches to the painting include brushstrokes lightly dragged across the surface, which emphasize the texture of the layers below. This includes the yellow and orange strokes used to indicate the foliage in the distant trees. For the most part, the composition was built up with little deviation from the initial lay-in. It appears that only the large stack at right was slightly modified during the painting process by extending the top and sides over the landscape. Some adjustments may also have been made to the horizon on the right side of the painting.[56]21

Multilayer Interactive Image Viewer

The multilayer interactive image viewer is designed to facilitate the viewer’s exploration and comparison of the technical images (fig. 27.1).[57]
22

Top half shows a pale yellow and light blue sky above low hills. The middle band has a dark green and purple tree line running across from left to right. In the foreground, two conical haystacks sit on a field mottled with pale green, blue, and pink; the larger stack is near the right edge and the smaller one is left of center, with a few small hay heaps nearby and bluish shadows on the ground.
Natural Light
Top area shows a dark gray, streaked band spanning the width, with a lighter horizontal strip beneath it. In the lower half, two rounded mounds sit on textured ground: a smaller, cone-like mound left of center and a larger, dome-like mound right of center. Faint vertical bands run from top to bottom near the middle, and each corner has a light, semi‑transparent triangular shape; small white dots linked by short lines appear near the corners and at the top and bottom center. Colors are shades of black, dark gray, and light gray.
X-Ray
A light gray sky fills the top, with a low ridge and clusters of darker gray trees stretching across the background. In the field below, two large conical mounds sit in the midground—one smaller near the left center and one larger on the right. Both mounds and the ground show varied gray tones with soft shadows, and a few small, low shapes are scattered nearby.
Infrared (0.9–1.7 µm)
Top area shows a dark gray-blue sky. Across the middle runs a low band of dark green-brown hills and trees. In the foreground, a field of muted green and brown has two cone-shaped haystacks: a large one on the right edge and a smaller one left of center, both colored brown with hints of purple, casting darker shadows to the right.
Raking Light
At the top, a dark sky in deep red, orange, and brown spans the width, with a brighter yellow‑orange area near the upper right. Across the middle runs a low, dark band of land forming the horizon. In the foreground, two large rounded stacks sit on dark ground—one smaller stack left of center and a larger one right of center—colored in deep brown, black, and orange‑red tones.
Transmited Light
Top area shows a cloudy sky in shades of gray, with darker edges. Across the middle, a low horizon with faint rounded forms runs left to right. In the foreground, two large cone-shaped mounds rest on uneven ground, the largest on the right and a smaller one left of center, with a few smaller mounds receding into the background. Tones range from near‑black shadows at the bases to light gray highlights on the mound surfaces.
Transmitted Infrared (1.0–1.1 µm)
At the top, a dark blue sky spans the scene. Across the middle is a low, shadowy ridge with irregular shapes and a few lighter patches, set behind an open field. In the foreground, two large conical mounds dominate the view—one bigger on the right and a smaller one left of center—colored in deep purples and muted browns, with the ground showing mixed purples and blues.
Ultraviolet
Alt text for the image
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Transmitted Infrared

Fig. 27.1

Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91). The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103. Interactive image.

Signature

Signed and dated: Claude Monet 91 (lower left, in orange-red paint[58]) (fig. 27.2). The signature was applied when the underlying paint layers were already dry. The paint from some of the taller letters (Cl, d, and M) has been smudged to the left (fig. 27.3).
23

Top area is a blend of soft pink, light lavender, and pale green patches. Moving downward, the center shows broader areas of green mixed with lavender and teal in irregular overlapping shapes. Along the lower third, a loose left-to-right line of small red marks appears as short, uneven dashes and dots. The bottom edge shifts to lighter aqua and mint tones.

Fig. 27.2


Detail of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing the signature. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

From top to bottom, mottled green and blue fill the upper area, with scattered small orange-red dots. Across the center slanting down to the right, several broad orange-red patches sit over a pale blue-green field, with hints of yellow and lavender around them. The surface appears highly textured with raised ridges and tiny pits that reflect light, giving a speckled look. A black bar labeled 5.0 mm appears at the lower left.
Monet 85.1103 MIC 4
A large black area covers most of the frame, extending from the top down and across the left side. In the bottom-right, a narrow horizontal strip occupies a small portion of the space, showing mottled patches of green, pink, purple, blue, and yellow. Along the lower edge of this strip, small curving red marks form a line, and a small black rectangle outlines a section near the left side of the strip.
Detail Location

Fig. 27.3

Photomicrograph of the signature of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing smudged paint. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Structure and Technique

Support

Canvas
Flax (commonly known as linen).[59]24

Standard format
The dimensions do not correspond to a standard-size stretcher; the stretcher was probably custom-ordered.[60]25

Weave
Plain weave. Average thread count (standard deviation): 23.4V (0.6) × 22.6H (0.7) threads/cm; the vertical threads were determined to correspond to the warp and the horizontal threads to the weft.[61] A warp-thread match was determined with seven other Monet paintings in the Art Institute’s collection: The Petite Creuse River (cat. 25 [W1231], inv. 1922.432); Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (cat. 28 [W1270], inv. 1933.444); Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (cat. 29 [W1278], inv. 1922.431); Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset); (cat. 32 [W1284], inv. 1983.166); Sandvika, Norway (cat. 34 [W1397], inv. 1961.790); Branch of the Seine near Giverny (Mist) (cat. 36 [W1475], inv. 1933.1156); and Water Lily Pond (cat. 37 [W1628], inv. 1933.441).[62]26

Canvas characteristics
There is pronounced cusping along the right edge, moderate cusping on the left edge, and mild cusping along the top and bottom edges.[63]27

Stretching
Current stretching: Dates to the lining applied prior to acquisition of the painting in 1985 (see Conservation History); copper tacks spaced approximately 2–3 cm apart. Another series of empty holes, which correspond to holes in the current stretcher, appears to be more recent.28

Original stretching: Tack holes spaced 5–8 cm apart; these holes appear to correspond to the cusping pattern in the canvas on the left, top, and bottom tacking edges, but not on the right tacking edge where the cusping is wider and more irregular.[64] There are a few additional holes, located on or close to the top and bottom foldovers (there are approximately four holes on each edge, fairly regularly spaced along the length of each side).[65] The origin and purpose of the holes are not known.29

Stretcher/strainer
Current stretcher: Five-membered wooden expansion bolt stretcher. The top member is slightly bowed. Depth: 3.2 cm.30

Original stretcher: Discarded, not documented. Depth: A second crease observed in places on the tacking margin (presumably where excess canvas was folded over the back edge of the original stretcher) suggests that the original stretcher depth was approximately 1.5–2 cm.31

Manufacturer’s/supplier’s marks
None observed in current examination or documented in previous examinations.32

Preparatory Layers

Sizing
Not determined (probably glue).[66]33

Ground application/texture
The ground layer extends to the edges of all tacking margins, indicating that the canvas was cut from a larger piece of primed fabric, which was probably commercially prepared. The ground consists of a single layer that ranges from approximately 10 to 100 µm in thickness, with the layer thicker in the interstices of the canvas and much thinner on the tops of the canvas threads. (fig. 27.4)
34

Dark gray field with a horizontal, uneven white strip runs near the upper center, tapering at both ends. Beneath it, a wide dark brown band with a mottled look and many thin pale lines fills most of the middle and lower area, with darker gray along the bottom edge. At the upper right, a scale bar labeled 100 µm is present; the white strip spans several times that bar’s length and varies in thickness.
Monet 85.1103 _x1381_10x_dkfld_b
Top third shows a pale sky shifting from light yellow on the right to soft blue across the top. Across the middle, a horizontal band of dark green trees sits in front of low purplish hills. In the field below, two large conical haystacks stand on green and lavender ground: a big one in the right foreground and a smaller one left of center, each with short shadows stretching left. Small dark shapes sit at the base of the right haystack.
Sample Location

Fig. 27.4

Photomicrograph of a cross section of the canvas and ground layers of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91). Original magnification: 100×. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Color
Off-white. Some dark pigment particles were observed under magnification (fig. 27.5).
35

At high magnification, a cream to tan surface fills the frame, broken into small polygonal plates with fine cracks; the top area shows faint pink and green tones while the bottom edge is darker brown. Across the surface, small oval pits with dark brown vertical lines appear in loose rows, each pit centered within a paler ring and spaced a few millimeters or less apart. A scale marker in the upper right labeled 1.0 mm indicates each oval feature is well under 1 mm wide.
Monet 85.1103 MIC 1
Top and middle areas are solid black. Along the bottom edge, a narrow horizontal strip shows mixed colors in soft green, pink, purple, and light blue. Near the lower left of this strip is cursive-style red text, and at the bottom right corner a small black-outlined square overlaps the colored area.
Detail Location

Fig. 27.5

Photomicrograph of the bottom edge of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing the ground layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Materials/composition
Analysis indicates the presence of the following components: lead white and calcium carbonate (chalk)[67], with traces of bone black, iron oxide, alumina, silica, and various silicates.[68] Binder: Oil (estimated).
36

Compositional Planning/Underdrawing/Painted Sketch

Extent/character
No underdrawing [link underdrawing] was observed with infrared reflectography [link infrared reflectography] (IRR) or microscopic examination.37

Paint Layer

Application/technique and artist’s revisions
The composition was laid in using strokes of thinly applied paint in more subdued colors than those used in the surface layers. For the small stack at left, the first application of thin reddish-brown paint, which barely covers the ground layer and leaves the canvas texture visible, can be seen occasionally through breaks in the upper brushwork (fig. 27.6). The hills in the background appear to have been laid in with shades that range from pale bluish-gray to greenish-gray. In the sky, warm off-white and gray tones were predominantly used for the initial painting. There is no overall underpainting in the field where the stacks are located; rather, this area consists of a buildup of individual strokes in a variety of pale hues (fig. 27.7). In localized areas, such as the long bluish-gray shadow extending from the base of the large stack, broader applications of thin, more uniform color were applied over the ground layer; in this case, a pale bluish-gray tone (fig. 27.8). In both the sky and the foreground, the earliest paint layers often consist of more textural brushstrokes with the ridges of the brush marks remaining visible through subsequent paint applications. The initial lay-in of the composition was left somewhat sketchy, with small areas of exposed ground visible throughout the canvas (fig. 27.9). The artist appears to have worked up the painting as a whole, moving back and forth between different areas of the composition.
38

Figs. 27.6–27.9

Top section shows mottled teal and purple with small patches of green and yellow. Left half is dominated by a large rounded area in muted mauve and brown, edged by a raised, coral-colored ridge that curves diagonally from upper left toward lower right. Right and lower areas contain swirls and streaks of bright yellow, green, and orange over purple and bluish-green, with the bluish-green spreading across the bottom right.

Fig. 27.6


Detail of the small wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the brushwork. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Top area features blended green and yellow with a thin light blue streak near the upper right. Across the center are irregular patches of peach, teal, light blue, and yellow on a bumpy, ridged surface. The lower half is mostly pale gray and lavender with scattered mint, peach, and blue spots, becoming more peach and yellow toward the right edge.

Fig. 27.7


Detail of the field in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the brushwork. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Top section shows a band of pale blue and lavender with small areas of yellow, orange, and green, especially near the upper right. The center is a broad field of light blue and purple with scattered small patches of pink and red. The bottom area shifts to green and teal tones blended with lavender, with a few faint pink spots. No distinct objects or people are visible.

Fig. 27.8


Detail of the field in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the brushwork. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Across the frame, broad areas of green, blue, purple, and yellow form a dense mix with no distinct objects. From top to bottom: the upper section is pale green and gray with touches of yellow and blue; the middle band has larger patches of green and teal with two smaller light spots—lavender near center-left and light blue at center-right; the lower section shows wide bands of green and mint with soft gray and small purple streaks. Lighter areas sit inside darker greens, with the largest color bands at the bottom, medium clusters in the middle, and small highlights near the center.

Fig. 27.9


Detail of the buildings in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the brushwork and small areas of exposed ground. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

The basic size and placement of the two stacks was laid out early in the painting process. At the upper right edge of the small stack, just below the thick orange outlining stroke that was applied later in the painting process, exposed ground is visible at the juncture between the stack and the surrounding landscape, indicating that the wheat stack and the distant landscape were built up simultaneously (fig. 27.10). In the large stack at right, on the other hand, a dense buildup of paint in a broad band around the sides and top suggests that the stack’s dimensions were increased as the painting was worked up, making the stack in the final painting significantly larger than its initial lay-in (fig. 27.11). The surface paint layers around the edges of the large stack consist of a more continuous buildup of wet-in-wet paint application (fig. 27.12), quite different from the more open network of superimposed brushstrokes used in the center of the stack and extensively throughout the composition (fig. 27.13). The continuous buildup of paint around the edges of the large stack makes it difficult to see the underlying layers; however, at the very edges, where there are breaks in some of the final brushwork, it is clear that the landscape continues underneath the edge of the stack to some extent (fig. 27.14).
39

Top area shows mixed patches of green, teal, lavender, and small touches of orange with a bumpy surface. A raised diagonal ridge of coral and peach runs from upper left toward lower right, standing out in the center. Bottom left has broad swirls of mauve, tan, and muted green, while the right side features clusters of yellow and pink against blue‑green.

Fig. 27.10


Detail of the small wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing exposed ground along the edge. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103. 

A pale yellow-to-blue sky spans the top, with low purple and green hills and a line of trees across the middle. Below, an open field stretches forward, where a large conical haystack stands on the right foreground and a smaller haystack sits farther left and back. The ground is mottled with greens, blues, and pinks, and short shadows gather around the bases of the stacks. Colors on the hay range from warm pinks and oranges to muted browns, contrasting with the cooler tones of the field and background.
Natural Light
In shades of gray, the top section is a wide dark band with streaky textures. The middle shows two mound-shaped forms on rough, layered surfaces: a smaller mound slightly left of center and a larger one to the right, with wavy shapes extending between them. Semi-transparent vertical strips run down the center area, and each corner has small white circles connected by short lines near pieces of tape, with a dashed border around the edges.
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray

Fig. 27.11

X-ray and natural-light details of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing dense brushwork around the edges of the large wheat stack. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103. Interactive image.

Figs. 27.12–27.14

Top area is a broad band of pale yellow with touches of peach and cream. Below it, the center holds a large rounded mound shape that fills most of the scene, colored with mixed browns and muted greens punctuated by pink and blue patches. Along the left and right edges, curved slopes in green, teal, and orange angle inward toward the middle.

Fig. 27.12


Detail of the large wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing wet-in-wet paint application. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103. 

Top half is mostly dusty pink with scattered patches of muted green and coral, with soft curved marks in darker green. Moving downward, the center holds pale areas of lavender and light green, while the bottom third becomes busier with rounded swirls in olive and tan. Lower right features a bright cluster of yellow and orange beside a band of blue‑violet along the bottom edge, with irregular shapes and no distinct objects defined.

Fig. 27.13


Detail of the large wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the paint layers. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103. 

From top left to bottom right runs a wide diagonal band of coral-orange with small raised lumps, edged by thin streaks of blue and lime green. The upper half contains swirled patches of light green, yellow-green, tan, and muted brown. The lower left is mostly dusty pink with touches of green, while the bottom right shifts to pale lavender and teal with scattered orange and green flecks.

Fig. 27.14


Detail of the large wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing strokes from the edge of the stack applied over the landscape. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Small areas of exposed ground visible intermittently along the upper limits of the distant hills suggest that the general horizon line was established early on (fig. 27.15). On the right side of the large stack, there is an area of densely built-up paint on and above the horizon line, which may indicate that some adjustments were made there (fig. 27.16). When viewed with transmitted light, a shape similar to the peak of the large stack is visible just to the right of the large stack, but it is unclear if this is related to an earlier form (fig. 27.17). Parts of the sky and the hillside, especially on the left side, were built up using undulating, zigzag strokes, which provide a distinct texture in those areas (fig. 27.18). These rhythmic brushstrokes were worked wet-in wet, with subsequent colors applied on top when the paint was dry, leaving the underlying texture undisturbed.
40

Top area is a large expanse of very light cream with hints of pale green and lavender. Across the middle, a narrow, wavy horizontal band of soft yellow runs left to right, bordered by patches of sage and olive green. The bottom section is a broader area of muted purple and gray with touches of teal, forming a darker base beneath the lighter center and top.

Fig. 27.15


Detail of the horizon in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing small areas of exposed ground. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Top third shows a dark, streaked sky in shades of gray. Across the center is a lighter, irregular horizontal band. In the lower half, two rounded mounds rest on textured ground: a smaller, cone-like mound left of center and a larger mound to the right, roughly twice the size, both dark gray with lighter edges. Around the borders are white triangular corner tabs and small circular markers, with a pale vertical strip near the center.
X-Ray
Pale yellow and blue sky at the top fades down to a band of distant hills and trees in muted purples and greens. Below, an open field in soft greens, blues, and pinks holds two large conical haystacks: a taller one on the right in the foreground and a smaller one left of center farther back. Small rounded piles sit near the base of the right haystack, and patches of blue, lavender, and peach color the grass around both stacks.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray

Fig. 27.16

X-ray and natural-light details of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing possible adjustments made to the horizon. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103. Interactive image.

At the top, a deep red and orange sky spans the width, fading to near-black at the edges. Below it, a dark horizontal band forms the horizon, with two large rounded mounds—one smaller on the left and a larger one on the right—marked by red, orange, and yellow highlights. In the foreground, the ground appears mostly black and dark brown with scattered reddish-brown streaks. No people, animals, or text are visible.
Transmitted Light
At the top, a pale yellow and light blue sky rests over a distant ridge of trees in muted greens and purples. In the middle ground, two conical haystacks stand in a wide field, the larger near the right edge and a smaller one left of center; both are reddish-brown with touches of pink and orange. In the foreground, the field shows patches of green, blue, and lavender, with a few small dark clumps near the base of the right haystack and darker areas on the ground around both stacks. The right haystack appears roughly twice the size of the left.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
Transmitted Infrared
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 27.17

Transmitted-light, transmitted infrared (Fuji, 1.0–1.1 µm), and natural-light details of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing possible adjustments made to the composition. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103. Interactive image.

Across the top, a wide horizontal band of medium to dark gray spans the width, with mottled lighter patches just below it. In the middle, two rounded mounds occupy the frame: a smaller one left of center and a larger one right of center, both in darker gray with lighter edges, with a narrow horizontal strip of mixed gray tone running behind them. The bottom third shows dense, wavy patterns in light and dark gray; around the perimeter are small light circles linked by short lines and light squares at all four corners.
X-Ray
Foreground shows a dark green and brown field with patches of blue‑gray shadow. Two haystacks sit in the field: a large reddish‑brown mound on the right and a smaller reddish‑brown mound near the center‑left. In the background, a low band of dark green trees and a softly outlined hill stretch across the scene, topped by a dim gray‑green sky.
Raking Light
Top third shows a pale yellow and light blue sky. Below it, a band of distant hills and trees runs left to right in muted greens and purples. In the foreground, a grassy field in mixed blues, greens, and pinks holds two conical haystacks, the larger on the right and a smaller one left of center, with a few small hay piles near the base of the right stack.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 27.18

X-ray, raking-light, and natural-light details of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing undulating brushstrokes. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103. Interactive image.

Overall, the painting has a rich, brushmarked surface, built up in an open network of strokes that leaves small areas of ground and earlier paint layers exposed (fig. 27.19, fig. 27.20). In some places, the underlying paint strokes are so heavily built up that the texture remains visible even when their color has been completely covered by subsequent paint (fig. 27.21). In other areas, strokes of low impasto lie adjacent to thinly painted passages (fig. 27.22) or were dragged directly over exposed ground where the canvas texture remains evident (fig. 27.23). It appears that the artist incorporated additional medium into some of his paints to achieve a more fluid consistency.[69] This can be seen, for example, in the swirl of deep-green and brown paint in the distant foliage to the left of the large stack (fig. 27.24). Here, the unmixed colors swirl together and the brushmarks have largely settled out to a smoother surface. In this area, the artist contrasted the smooth, fluid paint application with more textural brushstrokes and thinly applied paint layers where the canvas texture shows through, creating a varied surface. The thin yellow strokes, which were lightly dragged over the surface, depositing mainly on the high points of the underlying paint texture, were among the final additions to the painting. In some passages, particularly those associated with the more fluid paint applications, tiny bubble holes were often observed (fig. 27.25).[70] Some areas of impasto look slightly flattened. While this effect can be caused by the lining process, here it looks like it may have occurred early on when the paint was still soft (fig. 27.26, fig. 27.27). The upper left and lower right corners of the painting look like they were reinforced by the artist after the painting was finished.[71] In the upper left corner, the pale-blue paint added at the edges appears more fluid (at the horizon, a drip is visible) and opaque, but it looks like it was applied wet-in-wet with the adjacent sky paint (fig. 27.28). Along the lower right edge and corner, there is a band of pinkish-purple paint that appears more solid when compared with the discrete strokes used in the adjacent field. Here, the added paint at the edge appears to have been applied when the underlying paint was dry (fig. 27.29).
41

Across the top, pale purple-gray ridges run diagonally. In the center, an irregular beige patch is covered with many small, evenly spaced round bumps; purple-gray areas surround and partially overlap it on the left, right, and bottom. The bottom-left and right sides show thicker ridged swaths in the same purple-gray color. A thin black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm appears in the upper right corner.
Monet 85.1103 MIC 16
Most of the view is black, with a small rectangular scene in the lower-left corner. Inside the rectangle, the upper area shows a pale blue sky that fades to light yellow near the horizon. Along the bottom edge of this rectangle is a low, uneven band of dark green and purple shapes. A small black-outlined square sits in the sky area near the left side, slightly above center.
Detail Location

Fig. 27.19

Photomicrograph of the sky in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing exposed ground layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103. 

Top edge shows a thin black scale bar labeled 1.0 cm. Below it, colors run from green and mustard near the top to an irregular cream area in the center with many small dotted pits; muted purple and pink occupy the left and lower sections, with blue‑gray streaks toward the mid‑right. Brown and tan patches thread through the lower half, and the surface throughout has small raised bumps, shallow pits, and fine cracks that catch light. Based on the scale, the view spans only a few centimeters across.
Monet 85.1103 MIC 19
Large black space fills most of the frame, with a narrow multicolored band running along the bottom edge. Within this band, irregular patches of green, blue, pink, and purple are visible, and a small black-outlined square sits slightly left of center. Near the lower edge of the band, red cursive writing reads “Claude Monet 91.”
Detail Location

Fig. 27.20

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing exposed ground layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

From top to bottom, a textured surface shows broad horizontal bands and patches of green, teal, peach, pink, lavender, and gray-blue. The top third is mostly mottled green with thin peach and pink areas, marked by shallow ridges running left to right. The center features blue-green and gray-blue streaks with smaller patches of beige and light yellow, forming long grooves and a few raised knots. The right edge turns purple and pink with clusters of small bumps, while the bottom band is pale gray with hints of blue and dull green.

Fig. 27.21


Detail of the field in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing the buildup of texture from underlying brushstrokes. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Upper half shows lavender and mauve ridges, with a tall, thin ribbon-like streak on the left and a small raised nub with a white tip near the center. The middle area is rough and bumpy with mixed patches of red, tan-brown, and blue. Bottom section shifts to mustard-gold with scattered blue and purple flecks, while the right edge returns to folds of lavender. A black scale bar labeled “5.0 mm” appears in the lower left.
Monet 85.1103 MIC 8
A large black background fills most of the frame. In the lower-right corner, a small colorful rectangle contains patches and curved shapes in light blue, pink, green, orange, yellow, and purple; a denser cluster of rounded forms sits near its upper area, with a broad blue band running across the middle. Near the lower center of this rectangle, a small black box outlines a specific detail.
Detail Location

Fig. 27.22

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the brushwork. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103. 

Top left holds a large rounded area in orange, pink, and muted brown. From center to right, broad horizontal bands of pale green, yellow, blue, and peach run left-to-right, with smaller streaks of teal and gray near the bottom. The rounded area is the largest shape, taking roughly a quarter of the frame, while the colored bands fill the rest. No people, animals, or recognizable objects are present; this is a single image.

Fig. 27.23


Detail of the field in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the brushwork. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Top section shows a mix of green, purple, and gray with short, bright yellow lines and curved marks. The middle area has overlapping dark green and muted purple swirls, with small spots of teal and a rounded patch of pink and blue on the right. The lower area shifts to lighter green, crossed by wide pale gray bands, and the bottom-right edge has a narrow strip of red with a ridged appearance.

Fig. 27.24


Detail of a tree in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing fluid paint application. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Top area shows wavy swaths of pale purple with streaks of pink and small patches of light green and blue. Moving downward, the surface becomes densely textured with ridges in lavender and mauve, with scattered specks of blue and yellow. Bottom left features warmer tones—peach, tan, and muted orange—while the bottom right stays mostly lavender. A black scale bar labeled “5.0 mm” sits in the lower left.
Monet 85.1103 MIC 7
Large black background with a smaller rectangular color panel near the lower-right. Inside the panel, horizontal bands of blue, green, pink, and purple fill the space; near the upper area of this panel sits a large rounded brown‑green shape with a small orange patch along its right edge. Near the lower center of the panel, a thin black square outline overlays the colors.
Detail Location

Fig. 27.25

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing tiny bubble holes in the paint. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103. 

Top area shows patches of green and teal mixed with light purple. A raised coral-orange band runs diagonally from upper left to lower right, with tan-brown along its left side and lavender-purple along its right. Bottom areas blend brown and purple, with the lower right showing small streaks of yellow, lime green, and pink; no recognizable figures or items.

Fig. 27.26


Detail of the edge of the large wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing thick paint applications that have been slightly flattened. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Top left to bottom right, thick ridges of red‑orange material run diagonally, with small white streaks along their edges. Left and lower areas show a textured surface in purples and browns, while the upper right shifts to blue‑violet with a patch of yellow‑green near the center-right. The raised red‑orange ridges sit on top of the background textures and are a few millimeters wide and several millimeters long. A scale bar labeled 5.0 mm appears at the bottom left.
Monet 85.1103 MIC 11
Top and left areas are solid black, taking up most of the frame. In the bottom-right quarter, a small rectangular scene shows a large rounded mound in reddish-brown and pink tones on green and blue ground, with muted purple, green, and yellow shapes behind it. A small black-outlined rectangle appears on the upper-right side of the mound. The mound is the largest element, with surrounding colors of brown, pink, green, yellow, blue, and purple.
Detail Location

Fig. 27.27

Photomicrograph of the edge of the large wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing thick paint applications that have been slightly flattened. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Top area shows a wide sky in pale blue with soft touches of light green and lavender. Toward the middle near the horizon, the color shifts to a thin band of light yellow. Along the bottom, a low uneven ridge of land runs left to right in muted greens and purples, small in height compared to the large expanse of sky.

Fig. 27.28


Detail of the sky in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing fluid paint application. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Top third shows muted browns and greens with streaks of light blue and orange, forming two rounded, mound-like areas slightly left of center. The middle has a broad, uneven band of light blue and peach, with scattered small dabs of pink, beige, and pale purple around it. Bottom third is filled with soft patches of pink, lavender, pale yellow, and light green, with the lightest tones along the lower edge; shapes are irregular and small to medium in size.

Fig. 27.29


Detail of the lower right corner of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing pinkish-purple paint added wet-over-dry along the bottom edge. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Painting tools
Brushes including 1.0 and 1.5 cm width, flat ferrule (based on width and shape of brushstrokes). Smaller brushes or the narrow end of a brush were perhaps used for finer strokes. Several brush hairs are embedded in the paint surface.42

Palette
Analysis indicates the presence of the following pigments: lead white, cadmium yellow, vermilion, red lake, emerald green, viridian, cobalt blue, and ultramarine blue.[72] UV fluorescence of many of the red and pink paint strokes indicates the liberal use of red lake throughout the landscape.[73] Paint layers were found to contain complex mixtures of pigments (fig. 27.30).
43

A thin, wedge-shaped fragment rests on a dark background, tapering to the left and wider on the right. From top to bottom: a narrow blue-gray band with scattered white, red, and blue specks; a thicker pale yellow band densely dotted with multicolored specks; and a white band along the bottom with a rough, slightly pitted edge. Near the upper right is a small dark green, blocky piece, and a 50 µm scale bar appears at the lower right.
Monet 85.1103 _x1378_20x_DIC
A wide black background contains a small rectangular scene in the lower left. From top to bottom, a pale green-yellow sky sits above low purple and green hills. Below, an open field in green, blue, and pink tones stretches across, with two conical brown-orange mounds—one smaller near the left-center and one larger near the right-center; the larger mound is roughly twice the size of the smaller and has a few small brown lumps at its base.
Sample Location

Fig. 27.30

Photomicrograph of a cross section of the paint and ground layers from the bottom edge of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) showing complex pigment mixtures. Original magnification: 200×. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Binding media
Oil (estimated).[74]44

Surface Finish

Varnish layer/media
The painting was cleaned in 1996 and was left unvarnished (see Conservation History). The painting has a subtly variable surface (matte in some areas, low gloss in others) depending on the qualities of the paint.45

Conservation History

The painting was already wax-resin lined when it entered the collection in 1985. The date of the lining is unknown. Retouching observed around the edges of the painting probably dates to this treatment campaign.46

In 1996, the painting was cleaned and left unvarnished. The treatment notes indicate that there were two varnish layers present on the painting. The upper layer appeared to be a synthetic varnish, probably applied when the painting was lined. The lower varnish layer appeared slightly yellowed and may have been a thin natural-resin varnish.[75]47

Condition Summary

The painting is in good condition. The canvas is wax-resin lined and stretched taut on an expansion bolt stretcher with no planar deformations. Along all of the edges, there is cracking, abrasion, and small losses in the paint and ground layers, as well as some small tears in the canvas fibers at the foldovers. All of these areas are stable. There is a series of fine vertical scratches near the left edge of the painting and similar randomly oriented scratches in the upper left part of the sky that were made when the paint was still soft. Some areas of impasto, such as that along the right side of the small stack, appear slightly flattened. This may have occurred early on when the paint was still soft. There is an overall network of fine age cracks that is mostly visible only under magnification. Some light stretcher-bar cracks are visible in the sky. Localized microcracking observed in some yellow-green paint mixtures may be related to the degradation of specific pigments. There is some flattening of paint and embedded wood fibers in the rebate area, related to framing when the paint was still soft. There are also some gold residues from the frame along the bottom edge. Discreet retouching is present around the edges of the painting (especially top, left, and right). Several brush hairs are embedded in the paint surface.

Kimberley Muir48

Frame

Current frame (installed in 1995): The frame is not original to the painting. It is a reproduction of a Louis XIII convex frame with carved acanthus leaf on a recut bed and a guilloche front molding (Paul Mitchell Ltd., London, 1995). The frame is water gilded over red bole on gesso. The outer ogee, scotia, hollow, and cove sight are burnished. The frame is toned with thin washes of oil paint and glue size. The carved jelutong wood moldings are mitered with dovetail splines. The molding, from perimeter to interior, is fillet with rocked recutting; ogee topped with rocked recutting; ovolo with carved acanthus leaf on a recut bed; scotia; hollow; guilloche frieze bordered by rocked recutting; and fillet with cove sight (fig. 27.31).[76]
49

Pale blue and yellow sky at the top, with a band of low hills and dark green trees running left to right across the middle. In the field below, two rounded haystacks sit on blue‑green grass: a large one on the right front and a smaller one to the left middle, colored reddish-brown with pink and purple shadows. No people or animals are visible. A gold-colored ornate frame surrounds the picture.

Fig. 27.31


Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) in its current frame. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1985.1103.

Previous frame (installed by 1975; removed in 1995): The work was previously housed in an American, mid-twentieth-century, Louis XV reproduction frame with foliate cartouches and swept cabled sides, leaf-tip sight molding, and an independent linen-covered liner (fig. 27.32, fig. 27.33).[77]
50

On a beige wall, three gold-framed landscape paintings hang left to right, each with a small black label; the right frame appears smaller than the other two. Left: a green-brown field with two cone-shaped haystacks, low blue-purple hills, and a pale pink sky. Center: green and yellow trees beside blue water with visible reflections. Right: a similar field scene with two cone-shaped haystacks under a light gray-pink sky, with carpeted flooring visible along the bottom edge.

Fig. 27.32


Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) in a previous frame, installed in Paintings by Monet, Art Institute of Chicago, Mar. 15–May 11, 1975. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

At the top, faint wall text reads “THE POTTER PALMER AND BERTHA HONORE PALMER GALLERY.” Across the middle, five framed artworks hang in a row, with several adults standing left to right along the wall and looking at them; a low bench sits centered in front of the display with a short rope barrier behind it. In the foreground, two adults are closest and appear largest—one on the left in a dark suit and tie, and one on the right in a light jacket with short hair—both facing away from the artworks. A patterned wood floor fills the bottom area, with doorways at the far left and right edges.

Fig. 27.33


Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) in a previous frame, gallery installation. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

Kirk Vuillemot
51

Sold by the artist to Durand-Ruel, Paris, May 9, 1891, for 3,000 francs.[78]52

Sold by Durand-Ruel, Paris, to Charles Fairchild, Boston, June 26, 1891, for 5,000 francs.[79]53

Returned by Charles Fairchild, Boston, to Durand-Ruel, Paris, Aug. 4, 1891, in exchange for Monet’s Sur la falaise à Pourville, 1882.[80]54

Sold by Durand-Ruel, Paris, to Potter Palmer, Chicago, Aug. 4, 1891, for 6,000 francs.[81]55

By descent from Potter Palmer (died 1902), Chicago, to the Palmer Family56

By descent in the Palmer family to Mr. and Mrs. Arthur M. (Pauline Palmer) Wood (died 1984), Lake Forest, Illinois.57

Given by Mr. Arthur M. Wood, Sr., in memory of Pauline Palmer Wood, to the Art Institute of Chicago, beginning in 1985.[82]
58

Paris, Galeries Durand-Ruel, Exposition d’oeuvres récentes de Claude Monet, May 1891, cat. 1, as Meules. (Fin de l’été.). Appartient à M. Durand-Ruel.[83]59

Boston, Copley Society, Loan Collection of Paintings by Claude Monet and Eleven Sculptures by Auguste Rodin, Mar. 1905, cat. 9, as Meules. Fin de l’Eté. 1891. Lent by Mrs. Potter Palmer.[84]60

Possibly Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings from the Collection of Mrs. Potter Palmer, May 10–Aug., 1910, cat. 34, as Haystacks.[85]61

Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings by Monet, Mar. 15–May 11, 1975, cat. 88 (ill.). (fig. 27.34)
62

Left to right, three framed paintings hang on a beige wall at about eye level. The left painting shows two haystacks in a grassy field with low blue hills and a pale pink‑blue sky; the center painting shows dense green trees beside a calm body of water under light blue sky; the right painting shows two haystacks in a similar field with distant hills and a pale sky. All three sit in gold-toned, carved frames with small black labels beside them, evenly spaced along the wall.

Fig. 27.34


Installation of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91) in Paintings by Monet, Art Institute of Chicago, Mar. 15–May 11, 1975. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

Los Angeles County Museum of Art, A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, June 28–Sept. 16, 1984, cat. 108 (ill.); Art Institute of Chicago, Oct. 23, 1984–Jan. 6, 1985; Paris, Galeries Nationales d’Exposition, Grand Palais, as L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, Feb. 4–Apr. 22, 1985.[86]63

Art Institute of Chicago, The Art of the Edge: European Frames, 1300–1900, Oct. 17–Dec. 14, 1986, not in cat.[87]64

Boston, Museum of Fine Arts, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, Feb. 7–Apr. 29, 1990, cat. 17 (ill.); Art Institute of Chicago, May 19–Aug. 12, 1990; London, Royal Academy of Arts, Sept. 7–Dec. 9, 1990.65

Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago’s Dream, a World’s Treasure: The Art Institute of Chicago, 1893–1993, Nov. 1, 1993–Jan. 9, 1994, not in cat.[88]66

Art Institute of Chicago, Claude Monet, 1840–1926, July 22–Nov. 26, 1995, cat. 97 (ill.). 67

Florence, Sala Bianca di Palazzo Pitti, Claude Monet: La poesia della luce; Sette capolavori dell’Art Institute di Chicago a Palazzo Pitti, June 2–Aug. 29, 1999, no cat. no. (ill.).68

Hamburg, Hamburger Kunsthalle, Monets Vermächtnis: Serie—Ordnung und Obsession, Sept. 28, 2001–Jan. 6, 2002, no cat. no. (ill.).69

Fort Worth, Tex., Kimbell Museum of Art, The Impressionists: Master Paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago, June 29–Nov. 2, 2008, cat. 75 (ill.).
70

Galeries Durand-Ruel, Exposition d’oeuvres récentes de Claude Monet, exh. cat. (Galeries Durand-Ruel, 1891), p. 13, cat. 1.[89]71

“Claude Monet Exhibit Opens,” Boston Post, Mar. 15, 1905.72

Copley Society, Boston, Loan Collection of Paintings by Claude Monet and Eleven Sculptures by August Rodin, exh. cat. (Copley Society, 1905), p. 13, cat. 9.73

Possibly Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings from the Collection of Mrs. Potter Palmer, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago, 1910), cat. 34.74

Grace Seiberling, “The Evolution of an Impressionist,” in Paintings by Monet, ed. Susan Wise, exh. cat (Art Institute of Chicago, 1975), p. 32, 33.75

Susan Wise, ed., Paintings by Monet, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago, 1975), p. 145, cat. 88 (ill.).76

Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, Peintures, 1887–1898 (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), pp. 38; 42, n. 1032; 47, n. 1086; 138; 139, cat. 1269 (ill.); 262, letter 1114.77

Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 (Fall 1984), pp. 7; 10, fig. 1; 11; 16, pl. 6; 19; 21, n. 6, n. 7, n. 17.78

Andrea P. A. Belloli, ed., A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), p. 364.79

Richard R. Brettell, “The Fields of France,” in A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, ed. Andrea P. A. Belloli, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), pp. 246; 260–62; 267, no. 108 (ill.).80

Richard R. Brettell, “La campagne française,” in Réunion des Musées Nationaux, L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, exh. cat. (Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1985), pp. 261; 282–91, no. 108 (ill.).81

Art Institute of Chicago, Art Institute of Chicago Annual Report, 1985-86 (Art Institute of Chicago, 1986), pp. 6, pl. 8; 28; 71.82

Art Institute of Chicago, “Acquisitions,” Mosaic (Mar.–Apr. 1986), p. 8 (ill.).83

Art Institute of Chicago, Annual Report, 1986–1987 (Art Institute of Chicago, 1987), p. 56.84

Yvon Taillandier, Monet, rev. ed. (Crown, 1987), p. 67 (ill.).85

Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s : The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), pp. 3; 77; 78, pl. 20; 79; 80; 82; 296, cat. 17.86

Karin Sagner-Düchting, Claude Monet, 1840–1926: Ein Fest für die Augen (Benedikt Taschen, 1990), pp. 159, 161 (ill.).87

Sylvie Patin, Monet: “Un oeil . . . mais, bon Dieu, quel oeil!” (Gallimard/Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1991), pp. 104 (ill.), 105 (detail), 172. Translated by Anthony Roberts as Monet: The Ultimate Impressionist (Abrams, 1993), pp. 104 (ill.), 105 (detail), 171.88

Anne Rorimer, “The Date Paintings of On Kawara,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 17, 2 (1991), p. 122, fig. 2.89

John Sallis, “Monet’s Grainstacks: Shades of Time,” Tema Celeste International Art Magazine 30 (Mar.–Apr. 1991), pp. 62; 67, n. 2.90

Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Catalogue raisonné, vol. 5, Supplément aux peintures: Dessins; Pastels; Index (Wildenstein Institute, 1991), p. 47.91

Serge Bonnet, D’une fenaison à l’autre (Gérard Klopp, 1992), cover (ill.).92

George Keyes, “Claude Monet’s Grainstack, Sun in the Mist,” Arts 16, 12 (Dec. 1993), contents page (detail), p. 8 (ill.).93

Andrew Forge, Monet, Artists in Focus (Art Institute of Chicago, 1995), pp. 44; 48; 49; 86, pl. 15; 108.94

Jon Margolis, “When Paintings Talk … ,” Chicago Tribune Magazine, Sept. 17, 1995, p. 21 (ill.).95

Charles F. Stuckey, with the assistance of Sophia Shaw, Claude Monet, 1840–1926, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago/Thames & Hudson, 1995), pp. 118, cat. 97 (ill.); 220; 237.96

John Russell Taylor, Claude Monet: Impressions of France, from Le Havre to Giverny (Collins & Brown, 1995), pp. 106–07 (ill.).97

Marietta S. Millet, Light Revealing Architecture (Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1996), p. 27, fig. 1-41a.98

Daniel Wildenstein, Monet, or The Triumph of Impressionism, cat. rais., vol. 1 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 266, cat. 1269 (ill.); 275.99

Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 483; 485, cat. 1269 (ill.).100

Anne-Marie Bergeret-Gourbin, Monet: La Normandie (Herscher, 1997), pp. 54–55 (ill.).101

Masaki Fujihata and Yasuhito Nagahara, Kara azu a konseputo [Color as a concept] (Bijutsu Shuppan-Sha, 1997), pp. 34–35 (ill.), 160.102

John Sallis, Shades—of Painting at the Limit (Indiana University Press, 1998), n.pag., pl. 2; 26, n. 13; 46.103

Art Institute of Chicago, Master Paintings in the Art Institute of Chicago, selected by James N. Wood (Art Institute of Chicago/Hudson Hills, 1999), p. 68 (ill.).104

Simonella Condemi and Andrew Forge, Claude Monet: La poesia della luce; Sette capolavori dell’Art Institute di Chicago a Palazzo Pitti, exh. cat. (Giunti Gruppo, 1999), pp. 34–35 (ill.), 36–37 (detail).105

Art Institute of Chicago, Impressionism and Post-Impressionism in the Art Institute of Chicago, selected by James N. Wood (Art Institute of Chicago/Hudson Hills, 2000), p. 132 (ill.).106

Christoph Heinrich, “Une série d’effets différents: Monets ‘Getreideschober’ als Hülle für das Licht, die Zeit, das Universum—und ‘die märchenhafte Kraft und Pracht der Malerei,’” in Monets Vermächtnis: Serie—Ordnung und Obsession, ed. Christoph Heinrich, exh. cat. (Hamburger Kunsthalle/Hatje Cantz, 2001), p. 17.107

Christoph Heinrich, ed., Monets Vermächtnis: Serie—Ordnung und Obsession, exh. cat. (Hamburger Kunsthalle/Hatje Cantz, 2001), pp. 59 (detail), 62 (ill.), 183.108

Phillips, New York, Impressionist and Modern Art, sale cat. (Phillips, May 7, 2001), p. 86, fig. 1.109

Norio Shimada and Keiko Sakagami, Kurōdo Mone meigashū: Hikari to kaze no kiseki [Claude Monet, 1881–1926], vol. 2 (Nihon Bijutsu Kyōiku Sentā, 2001), pp. 67, no. 195 (ill.); 189.110

Richard R. Brettell, From Monet to Van Gogh: A History of Impressionism, vol. 2 (Teaching Co., 2002), pp. 161, 166, 183.111

Art Institute of Chicago, The Art Institute of Chicago: The Essential Guide, selected by James N. Wood, rev. ed. (Art Institute of Chicago, 2003), p. 165 (ill.).112

Rhoda Feldman, “Art-Science Integration: Portrait of a Residency” (Ph.D. diss., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2003), pp. 274; 275, fig. 7.113

Eleanor Dwight, ed., The Letters of Pauline Palmer: A Great Lady of Chicago’s First Family (M. T. Train/Scala, 2005), pp. 290 (ill.), 293, 326.114

Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Impressionists: Master Paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago/Kimbell Art Museum, 2008), pp. 21 (ill.); 22; 103; 108; 156; 157, cat. 75 (ill.). Simultaneously published as Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Age of Impressionism at the Art Institute of Chicago (Art Institute of Chicago/Yale University Press, 2008), pp. 21 (ill.); 22; 103; 108; 156; 157, cat. 75 (ill.).[90]115

Iris Schaefer, Caroline von Saint-George, and Katja Lewerentz, Impressionismus: Wie das Licht auf die Leinwand kam, exh. cat. (Wallraf-Richartz-Museum and Fondation Corboud/Skira, 2008), pp. 23, abb. 8; 26. Translated as Painting Light: The Hidden Techniques of the Impressionists, exh. cat. (Wallraf-Richartz-Museum and Fondation Corboud/Skira, 2008), pp. 23, ill. 8; 26.116

Iris Schaefer, Caroline von Saint-George, and Katja Lewerentz, Impressionismo: Dipingere la luce; Le tecniche nascoste de Monet, Renoir e Van Gogh, ed. Monica Maroni, exh. cat. (Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi/Wallraf-Richartz-Museum and Foundation Corboud/Skira, 2008), pp. 23, ill. 8; 26.117

Art Institute of Chicago, Master Paintings in the Art Institute of Chicago, selected by James Cuno (Art Institute of Chicago/Yale University Press, 2009), p. 67 (ill.).118

Art Institute of Chicago, The Essential Guide (Art Institute of Chicago, 2009), p. 227 (ill.).119

Claudia Beltramo Ceppi, Monet: Il tempo delle ninfee, exh. cat. (Palazzo Reale/Giunti, 2009), pp. 65; 69, fig 22.120

Richard Ormond and Elaine Kilmurray, John Singer Sargent: Complete Paintings, vol. 5, Figures and Landscapes, 1883–1899, with a preface by Warren Adelson and research assistance from Richard H. Finnegan (Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art/Yale University Press, 2010), p. 61, fig. 25.121

Caroline Spelman, “My Favourite Painting,” Country Life 205, 36 (Sept. 7, 2011), p. 82 (ill.).
122

Archival Documentation from the Durand-Ruel Archives

Inventory number
Stock Durand-Ruel Paris 938
Durand-Ruel Paris stock book 1891–1901[91]123

Other Documents

Label[92] (fig. 27.35)
124

A tan, textured surface fills the frame. In the center, a small, torn, dark‑brown paper label with rough edges is affixed; a lighter, whitish reflection runs along the label’s right side. Faded dark gray handwriting appears across it, with most words illegible; the clearest characters are the number 938 near the right-middle. The label occupies a small portion of the scene compared to the surrounding background.

Fig. 27.35


Labels and inscriptions

Undated

Number
Location: backing board
Method: handwritten script
Content: 6 (fig. 27.36)
125

Centered on a light brown background, a large red numeral 6 is drawn with a thick curved line. The tip points toward the upper right, and the rounded loop opens to the left with a small light-brown opening inside. No other elements are present.

Fig. 27.36


Label
Location: backing board
Method: handwritten script on masking tape
Content: crate / 26 (fig. 27.37)
126

A torn, light tan rectangle sits centered on a medium-brown background, occupying most of the frame vertically. From top to bottom, dark gray-blue handwriting reads “Crate” in the upper half and “26” in large numerals in the lower half. The rectangle has uneven top and bottom edges, with straight left and right sides.

Fig. 27.37


Inscription
Location: backing board
Method: handwritten script
Content: COLLECTION OF: MR. & MRS. ARTHUR M. WOOD / ARTIST: CLAUDE MONET / TITLE: MEULES FIN DE L’ETE. 1891 (fig. 27.38)
127

Top to bottom, a light brown wooden surface shows three lines of dark green, all-caps handwriting. The first line reads “COLLECTION OF: MR. & MRS. ARTHUR M. WOOD,” the second reads “ARTIST: CLAUDE MONET,” and the third reads “TITLE: MEULES FIN DE L’ETE . 1891.” Near the upper edge are small metal fittings: a rectangular bracket left of center and a single screw at the upper right.

Fig. 27.38


Inscription
Location: backing board
Method: handwritten script
Content: Morning Mist [crossed out] (fig. 27.39)
128

Along the top edge, a narrow dark gray strip runs horizontally, and a small round silver fastener sits near the upper right. Across the middle of a brown surface, the words “Morning Mist” are written in light gray pencil and crossed out by a single horizontal line from left to right. The handwriting spans most of the width, while the fastener is small in comparison.

Fig. 27.39


Inscription
Location: backing board
Method: handwritten script
Content: 9” up / from [cred?] (fig. 27.40)
129

Top left shows a small gold-colored bracket with two circular holes beside a vertical strip of textured gray material. Moving right, a wide tan surface fills most of the view, with faint pencil handwriting that clearly reads “9" up” and additional words that are partially illegible. The bracket sits near the upper edge, while the handwriting appears in the middle-right area.

Fig. 27.40


Inscription
Location: backing board
Method: handwritten script
Content: 15 4 [1/4?] / 4 1 1/2 (fig. 27.41)
130

Top edge shows a narrow, dark brown strip, with a lighter brown surface below. Near the upper center, a gray pencil line runs horizontally with a small arrow pointing left, and a short vertical line sits near the right edge. Faint pencil marks resembling numbers appear across the center, including a slanted “4” at left center and “1” and “2” near the lower center, with additional “4”-like marks near the upper middle.

Fig. 27.41


Inscription
Location: backing board
Method: handwritten script
Content: 10 2 3/4 (fig. 27.42)
131

A flat tan-brown surface fills the frame. From left to right, faint gray hand-drawn marks are scattered across it, with a small, clearly readable number “2” near the lower center. Lighter partial strokes appear to the left and upper left, and a few indistinct marks run down the right side; the markings are thin and small against the broad background.

Fig. 27.42


Pre-1980

Label
Location: backing board (partial label has been transferred to current backing board)
Method: printed label with handwritten script
Content: PAR[. . .] 16, Rue [. . .] / NEW-YORK 315 Fifth avenue / Monet No938 / Meules / fin de l’été / [r?]sss (fig. 27.43, fig. 27.44)
132

A light brown, textured surface fills the frame. Near the center, a small, irregular, torn dark-brown label is affixed, surrounded by a slightly glossier rectangular area. Faded handwriting in dark ink appears on the label, with only a few characters clearly visible, including the number 938; most other text is smudged or missing. A lighter patch runs along the right edge of the label.

Fig. 27.43


Centered on a light gray surface sits a small, torn gray label with both printed and handwritten text. From top left to right, printed words read “PARIS” on the left and “Fifth avenue” on the right with a missing patch between; below that, “NEW-YORK” appears on the left with “315” nearby. Faint cursive handwriting crosses the middle, and on the right the printed “No” is followed by an unclear number, with a darker handwritten four-digit number ending in 55 at the bottom right.

Fig. 27.44


Label
Location: backing board (partial label has been transferred to current backing board)
Method: printed label with handwritten script
Content: Please state [. . .] as possible [. . .] / painted. / [blank] / Insurance value. / $8000 / Please, if possible, state when and where picture has / been exhibited. / [blank] / Signed, / Mrs Potter Palmer / By F A Bryden / [. . .][93] (fig. 27.45)
133

Centered on a tan-brown background is a small, worn rectangular label with faded edges. From top to bottom, printed lines read “Insurance value.” followed by a handwritten “$8000”; below that is “Please, if possible, state when and where picture has been exhibited.”; near the bottom it reads “Signed,” with a cursive signature “Mrs Potter Palmer,” and a second cursive line beginning with “By” and a partly legible name (appears as “F. W. Bryden,” letters unclear). Text is in dark ink on a light tan field, arranged in horizontal lines separated by thin rules.

Fig. 27.45


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with typewritten and handwritten script
Content: PAINTINGS BY MONET / The Art Institute of Chicago / March 15 – May 11, 1975 / Meules fin de l’été / Mrs. Arthur M. Wood, Lake Forest, / Ill. / #88 / FE 26 (fig. 27.46)
134

Rectangular off‑white label with a thin red border on a brown surface. From top to bottom, printed text reads: “PAINTINGS BY MONET” in black, “The Art Institute of Chicago” in red, “March 15 – May 11, 1975” in black, a horizontal line, “Meules fin de l’été” in black and underlined, and “Mrs. Arthur M. Wood, Lake Forest, Ill.” in black, with “#88” in the lower left. Near the bottom, large blue‑gray handwritten text reads “FE 26.”

Fig. 27.46


Inscription
Location: backing board
Method: handwritten script
Content: FE26 (fig. 27.47)
135

Top area shows a tan surface with faint gray handwritten characters reading “FE 26,” slanting slightly upward from left to right. The letters “F” and “E” are on the left, with the number “26” to the right. A narrow white strip runs horizontally along the bottom edge beneath the tan area.

Fig. 27.47


Post-1980

Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with typewritten script
Content: Los Angeles County Museum of Art / 5905 Wilshire Boulevard / Los Angeles, California 90036 / EX.84.485 cat. #108 / Exhib.: A DAY IN THE COUNTRY: IMPRESSIONISM AND THE / FRENCH LANDSCAPE / Dates: 6/28/84–9/16/84 / Artist: Claude Monet / Title: Grainstacks, End of Summer, Evening. / Date: 1891 / Medium: Oil on canvas / Size: 23 5/8 x 39 3/8 in. / Lender: Mr. Arthur M. Wood / Accessory Size: / 33 × 48 7/8 × 3 in. (fig. 27.48)
136

Rectangular museum label with a dark gray header and off-white body on a tan background; black text reads “Los Angeles County Museum of Art,” the address “5905 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California 90036,” and the numbers “EX.84.485” and “cat. #108.” Below, lines list “Exhib.: A DAY IN THE COUNTRY: IMPRESSIONISM AND THE FRENCH LANDSCAPE” and “Dates: 6/28/84–9/16/84.” Next lines state “Artist: Claude Monet” and “Title: Grainstacks, End of Summer, Evening.,” followed by “Date: 1891.” Lower lines read “Medium: Oil on canvas,” “Size: 23 5/8 x 39 3/8 in.,” “Lender: Mr. Arthur M. Wood,” and “Accessory Size: 33 x 48 7/8 x 3 in.”

Fig. 27.48


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with ink stamp and handwritten script
Content: [logo] Réunion des musées nationaux Paris / L’impressionnisme et le paysage français / Galeries nationales du Grand Palais / 4 février–22 avril 1985 / MONET / Titre de l’oeuvre: Meules, fin de l’été, effet du soir / Propriétaire: M. Arthur M. Wood / No du Catalogue: 108 (fig. 27.49)
137

A rectangular white label on a tan surface shows printed and handwritten French text in black, with a small black circle containing a white “m” at the top left and “Réunion des musées nationaux Paris” across the top. Below, a purple stamp reads “L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, Galeries nationales du Grand Palais, 4 février — 22 avril 1985.” Farther down, three lines read: “Titre de l’œuvre:” with handwritten “MONET — Meules, fin de l’été, effet du soir”; “Propriétaire:” with handwritten “D. Arthur M. Wood”; and “N° du Catalogue:” with handwritten “108.”

Fig. 27.49


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: MONET IN THE ’90s: / THE SERIES PAINTINGS / Museum of Fine Arts, Boston / Feb 7–Apr 29, 1990 / Art Institute of Chicago / May 19–Aug 12, 1990 / Royal Academy, London / Sep 7–Dec 9, 1990 / CAT# : 17 W: 1269 / TITLE : Grainstacks (End of summer) / LENDER: The Art Institute of Chicago (fig. 27.50)
138

Rectangular off-white label with black typed text, attached with clear tape to a brown surface. From top to bottom the text reads: “MONET IN THE ’90s: THE SERIES PAINTINGS,” then “Museum of Fine Arts, Boston — Feb 7 – Apr 29, 1990; Art Institute of Chicago — May 19 – Aug 12, 1990; Royal Academy, London — Sep 7 – Dec 9, 1990.” At the bottom are “CAT#: 17 W. 1269,” “TITLE: Grainstacks (End of summer),” and “LENDER: The Art Institute of Chicago.”

Fig. 27.50


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with typewritten and handwritten script
Content: Museum of Fine Arts / Boston, MA 02115 / W. 1284 [crossed out with 1269 written above] GRAINSTACK / Art I., Chicago (fig. 27.51)
139

A rectangular light-gray sticker with rounded corners is affixed to a brown surface. Top section in teal reads “Museum of Fine Arts” and “Boston, MA 02115.” Below, a black handwritten number “1269” appears; the next line shows “W.” with the printed number “1284” crossed out, followed by “GRAINSTACK.” Two teal dots sit along the left edge with thin teal lines across the mid and lower portions, and the bottom text in black reads “Art I., Chicago.”

Fig. 27.51


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: The Art Institute of Chicago / “Claude Monet: 1840–1926” / July 14, 1995–November 26, 1995 / Catalog: 97 / Wheatstacks (End of Summer) / Meules, fin de l’été, effet du soir / The Art Institute of Chicago, Arthur M. Wood in / memory of Pauline Palmer Wood (1985.1103) (fig. 27.52)
140

A rectangular white label on a brown background shows black and blue printed text. From top to bottom, it reads “The Art Institute of Chicago,” “Claude Monet: 1840-1926,” “July 14, 1995 - November 26, 1995,” and “Catalog: 97.” Below are two blue underlined titles, “Wheatstacks (End of Summer)” and “Meules, fin de l’été, effet du soir,” with the bottom line in black reading “The Art Institute of Chicago, Arthur M. Wood in memory of Pauline Palmer Wood (1985.1103).”

Fig. 27.52


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with typewritten script
Content: THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO / artist Monet / title “Haystacks, End of Summer” / medium oil on canvas / credit / acc. # 1985.1103 / LZ-341-001 1M 1/90 (Rev. 1/90) (fig. 27.53)
141

White rectangular museum label centered on a tan background, filling most of the frame. Top line in large black text reads THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO; below, left column prompts read “artist,” “title,” “medium,” “credit,” and “acc. #,” with entries to the right: Monet; “Haystacks, End of Summer”; oil on canvas; [blank]; and 1985.1103. Very small black text appears in the lower right corner with the code “LZ-341-001 1M 1/90 (Rev. 1/90).”

Fig. 27.53


Examination and Analysis Techniques

X-radiography

Westinghouse X-ray unit, scanned on Epson Expressions 10000XL flatbed scanner. Scans digitally composited by Robert G. Erdmann, University of Arizona.142

Infrared Reflectography

Goodrich/Sensors Unlimited SU640SDV-1.7RT with H filter (1.1–1.4 µm) and J filter (1.5–1.7 µm); Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-Nite 1000B/2 mm filter (1.0–1.1 µm); and Inframetrics Infracam with 1.5–1.73 µm filter.143

Transmitted Infrared

Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-Nite 1000B/2 mm filter (1.0–1.1 µm).144

Visible Light

Natural-light, raking-light, and transmitted-light overalls and macrophotography: Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-NiteCC1 filter.145

Ultraviolet

Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-NiteCC1 filter and Kodak Wratten 2E filter.146

High-Resolution Visible Light (and Ultraviolet)

Sinar P3 camera with Sinarback eVolution 75 H (PECA 918 UV/IR interference cut filter and Kodak Wratten 2E filter).147

Microscopy and Photomicrographs

Sample and cross-sectional analysis using a Zeiss Axioplan2 research microscope equipped with reflected light/UV fluorescence and a Zeiss AxioCam MRc5 digital camera. Types of illumination used: darkfield, differential interference contrast (DIC), and UV. In situ photomicrographs with a Wild Heerbrugg M7A StereoZoom microscope fitted with an Olympus DP71 microscope digital camera.148

X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy (XRF)

Several spots on the painting were analyzed in situ with a Bruker/Keymaster TRACeR III-V with rhodium tube.149

Polarized Light Microscopy (PLM)

Zeiss Universal research microscope.150

Scanning Electron Microscopy/Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy

Cross sections analyzed after carbon coating with a Hitachi S-3400N-II VP-SEM with an Oxford EDS and a Hitachi solid-state BSE detector. Analysis was performed at the Northwestern University Atomic and Nanoscale Characterization Experimental Center (NUANCE) EPIC facility.151

Automated Thread Counting

Thread count and weave information were determined by Thread Count Automation Project software.[94]152

Image Registration Software

Overlay images registered using a novel image-based algorithm developed by Damon M. Conover (GW), John K. Delaney (GW, NGA), and Murray H. Loew (GW) of the George Washington University’s School of Engineering and Applied Science and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.[95]153

Image Inventory

The image inventory compiles records of all known images of the artwork on file in the Conservation Department, the Imaging Department, and the Department of Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture at the Art Institute of Chicago (fig. 27.54).
154

Fig. 27.54
Location/Negative # Format Purpose Date Lighting, Notes
E32020 4 × 5 CT   Unknown  
E09900 4 × 5 CT Pretreatment  1985? Normal, overall
E32030 4 × 5 CT Posttreatment Oct. 8, 1996 Normal, overall
132283 Digital Loan exam Nov. 2008 Annotated image E32030
Conservation Digital  OSCI June 15, 2010 Normal, overall
Conservation Digital OSCI June 15, 2010 Raking light, overall (2 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI June 15, 2010 Ultraviolet, overall (2 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI June 15, 2010 Infrared (Fuji, 1000B/2 mm filter), overall
Conservation Digital OSCI June 15, 2010 Transmitted light, overall (3 total)
Conservation Digital  OSCI June 15, 2010 Transmitted infrared (Fuji, 1000B/2 mm filter), overall 
Conservation Digital OSCI June 15, 2010 Detail images of verso, labels (17 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI June 15, 2010 X-ray films scanned/digitally composited, overall
Conservation Digital OSCI June 17, 2010 Macro details (12 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI June 18, 2010 Photomicrographs of surface (23 total)
G39369 Digital OSCI Feb. 28, 2012 Normal, overall; composite of G39838–G39861
G39838–G39861 Digital OSCI Feb. 28, 2012 Sections (24 total)
G39371 Digital OSCI Feb. 29, 2012 Normal, frame only
Conservation Digital OSCI Feb. 29, 2012 Infrared (Goodrich, no filter, 0.9–1.7 µm), overall
G39370 Digital OSCI June 13, 2012 Ultraviolet, overall

Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn), 1890/91 (Cat. 28)

Technical Summary

Claude Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) was executed on a pre-primed, no. 40 seascape (marine) standard-size linen canvas. The ground consists of a single, off-white layer. A warp-thread match was detected with seven other Monet paintings from the Art Institute’s collection: The Petite Creuse River (1889; 1922.432 [W1231]) (cat. 25), Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (1890/91; 1985.1103 [W1269]) (cat. 27), Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91; 1922.431 [W1278]) (cat. 29), Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91; 1983.166 [W1284]) (cat. 32), Sandvika, Norway (1895; 1961.790 [W1397]) (cat. 34), Branch of the Seine, near Giverny (Mist) (1897; 1933.1156 [W1475]) (cat. 36), and Water Lily Pond (1900; 1933.441 [W1628]) (cat. 37), suggesting that the fabric for these paintings came from the same bolt of material.[96] The artist built up the composition as a whole, using a relatively narrow tonal range. The main compositional areas were laid in with subdued tones and then worked up with strokes of more intense color. Technical examination of the painting revealed some alterations to the composition. The small stack at left was originally placed lower on the canvas and farther to the right. The large stack at right was originally narrower along the left side and slightly shorter compared to its size in the final painting. Probably coinciding with these changes, the two buildings in the distance and the horizon were also shifted up slightly.[97]155

Multilayer Interactive Image Viewer

The multilayer interactive image viewer is designed to facilitate the viewer’s exploration and comparison of the technical images (fig. 28.1).[98]
156

Top area shows a pale sky that shifts from soft yellow and peach near the horizon to light blue higher up. Across the middle, a band of dark green trees and low hills stretches left to right. In the foreground, two rounded haystacks in reddish-orange and brown sit in a grassy field of muted green and lavender, with the larger stack on the right close to the front and the smaller one on the left set farther back.
Natural Light
Grayscale view with a streaky band of light and dark gray across the top. A thin, slightly curved horizontal line runs through the middle, and below it are two mound-like forms on a textured ground: a smaller one left of center and a larger one right of center, the right roughly twice the size. A faint vertical lighter strip appears near the center, and small, evenly spaced light marks line all four edges.
X-Ray
Top area shows a light gray sky. Across the middle runs a darker gray ridge with several rounded tree- or bush-like shapes. In the foreground are two large conical mounds, one much larger at center-right and a smaller one at center-left, with patchy darker gray ground along the bottom edge. All elements appear in shades of gray, ranging from very light in the sky to medium and dark tones in the land.
Infrared Reflectogram (1.0–1.1 µm)
Across the top, a narrow sky fades from pale pink and peach to gray-blue. Below it, a dark horizontal band of distant trees and low hills spans left to right. In the foreground, two large conical mounds dominate the field—one much larger on the right and a smaller one to the left—both in muted reddish-brown, with a few smaller, dimmer mounds farther back. The ground at the bottom is a flat field in dull green and brown tones.
Raking Light
Top third shows a horizontal band of dark red and maroon mottling against black. Across the middle, a wide black area spans left to right, with a small low rise near center and a larger rounded dark shape just right of center. Bottom half is mostly black with scattered, faint red specks. Colors are primarily black with deep red accents.
Transmited Light
At the top, a light gray sky with darker streaks spans the width, separated from the lower area by a thin horizontal band across the middle. Below this band, the ground is mottled in black, white, and gray, with two rounded mound shapes: a larger, taller one near the right side and a smaller one toward the left. The mounds occupy most of the lower half, with high-contrast edges and a rough, grainy surface across the scene.
Transmitted Infrared (1.0–1.1 µm)
Top section shows a dark blue-green sky with darker patches. Across the middle, a nearly black horizontal band of rounded shapes stretches from left to right. In the lower half, a field in deep blue and purple tones holds two cone-shaped mounds: a very large mound dominates the right foreground near the edge, while a smaller mound sits to the left at mid-distance. The right mound appears about twice as wide and taller than the left, with open ground between them.
Ultraviolet
Alt text for the image
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
Transmitted Infrared
Alt text for the image
X-Ray

Fig. 28.1

Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91). The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444. Interactive image.

Signature

Signed and dated: Claude Monet 91 (lower left, in red paint[99]) (fig. 28.2). Claude was executed with a somewhat duller red paint, while more of the bright red paint was picked up on the brush for the second half of the signature and the date. The signature was applied when some of the underlying paint was still wet, specifically, the strokes of pale pink and bluish-purple paint, which were picked up by the signature (fig. 28.3); these strokes may represent final touches added by the artist just before signing the work.[100]
157

A narrow horizontal close-up shows a textured surface with blended patches of light green, pale pink, lavender, yellow, and small areas of blue and teal from top to bottom. Across the lower third, dark red letters run left to right, reading “Claude Monet 91,” with the numbers at the far right. The red text is small compared to the overall width and sits over mottled green and purple areas.

Fig. 28.2


Detail of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing the signature. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Close-up of a ridged, glossy surface with mixed colors. From left to right: the left area is mostly medium green with scattered pale purple and yellow; the center shows a curved swath of reddish-brown over pale purple; the right area blends pale purple with patches of green and yellow. Fine cracks and tiny black specks are visible across the surface, and a scale bar at the bottom right reads 2.0 mm.
Monet 33.444 MIC 5
Most of the frame, from top to near the bottom, is solid black. Along the bottom edge, a narrow horizontal strip shows irregular patches of green, blue, pink, gray, and tan with red marks across it. A small black-outlined square sits on the left side of this strip, and several red curved lines run from left to right, with two thicker red shapes near the right end.
Detail Location

Fig. 28.3

Photomicrograph of the signature of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing wet-in-wet paint application. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Structure and Technique

Support

Canvas
Flax (commonly known as linen).[101]158

Standard format
The original dimensions were approximately 65 × 100 cm. This corresponds to a no. 40 seascape (marine) standard-size stretcher.[102]159

Weave
Plain weave. Average thread count (standard deviation): 23.3V (0.6) × 22.6H (0.7) threads/cm. The vertical threads were determined to correspond to the warp and the horizontal threads to the weft.[103] A warp-thread match was determined with seven other Monet paintings: The Petite Creuse River (1889; 1922.432 [W1231]) (cat. 25), Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer)(1890/91; 1985.1103 [W1269]) (cat. 27), Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91; 1922.431 [W1278]) (cat. 29), Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset)(1890/91; 1983.166 [W1284]), Sandvika, Norway (1895; 1961.790 [W1397]) (cat. 34), Branch of the Seine, near Giverny (Mist) (1897; 1933.1156 [W1475]) (cat. 36), and Water Lily Pond (1900; 1933.441 [W1628]) (cat. 37).[104]160

Canvas characteristics
Cusping is strong on the left and especially on the right edges, and milder along the top and bottom edges.161

Stretching
Current stretching: Dates to the 1993 conservation treatment (see Conservation History); tacks spaced 1–5 cm apart, reusing some of the original holes. There is an additional series of small pinholes that looks more recent. This could relate to the metal strip molding applied in 1959 (see Conservation History).162

Original stretching: Tack holes spaced approximately 4–7 cm apart; on the left side, there are a couple of holes quite close to the foldover. Some of the original tack holes correspond to the cusping pattern, but there are also additional tack holes in between the points of cusping. Cusping on the right edge extends beyond the cut edge of the canvas in places, indicating that the point of attachment was beyond the current canvas edge (fig. 28.4).[105]
163

From left to right, three small white diamond-shaped tabs with copper-colored circular centers are attached along a beige, textured edge. The edge has scuffs, brown stains, and a few small holes, with a more damaged patch near the middle. A thin pale green strip runs along the top, and the area below the edge is dark gray and out of focus. The three tabs are similar in size and spaced a short distance apart.

Fig. 28.4


Detail of the right tacking edge of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91). The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Stretcher/strainer

Current stretcher: Dates to the 1993 treatment (see Conservation History); five-membered wooden stretcher with vertical crossbar and keyable mortise and tenon joints (no keys present). Depth: 3 cm.164

Original stretcher: Discarded. The pre-1974-treatment stretcher may have been the original stretcher.[106] It was five-membered with a vertical crossbar, mortise and tenon joints, and ten keys (fig. 28.5). An undated report in the conservation file describes the stretcher as a “type 2” with the following dimensions: overall, 99 × 64 cm; outside depth, 2 cm; width, 7 cm; inside depth, 2 cm; distance from canvas position, 0.4 cm; length of mortise, 7 cm.[107]
165

Rectangular frame seen from the back, showing two large gray fabric panels divided by a central vertical support. Across the top and bottom edges are patches and small hold-down tabs, with triangular wedges at the corners; the outer border is scuffed in many spots. The center support carries stacked paper labels with small printed text, and the left edge shows handwritten notes including “6-17-74,” “TWO HAYSTACKS,” “MONET C.,” and “VERSO.” A measuring stick runs along the right side, and a dark background with a cylindrical bar appears near the top.

Fig. 28.5


Black-and-white photograph (1974) of the back of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing the previous stretcher.  The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Manufacturer’s/supplier’s marks
None observed in current examination or documented in previous examinations.166

Preparatory Layers

Sizing
Not determined (probably glue).[108]167

Ground Application/texture
The ground layer extends to the edges of all four tacking margins, indicating that the canvas was cut from a larger piece of primed fabric, which was probably commercially prepared. The ground consists of a single layer that ranges from approximately 20 to 100 µm in thickness (fig. 28.6).
168

Top edge shows a narrow white to light gray band running left to right, with an uneven surface and a few small pits. Below it, a broader brown zone with mottled, bubble-like textures and curved, layered lines extends across the middle, tapering toward the right; the lower area is dark gray. A white scale bar labeled 100 µm appears at the bottom right for size reference.
On the far left is a small rectangular picture set against a black background. Inside the picture, a pale sky with green, yellow, and pink sits above a dark blue tree line; below, two reddish-brown, cone-shaped haystacks stand in a mottled green and violet field, with the larger stack near center-right and the smaller at the left. On the right side of the overall frame, a white arrow points left toward the picture, and the remaining area is solid black.
Sample Location

Fig. 28.6

Photomicrograph of a cross section of the canvas and ground layers of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91). Original magnification: 200×. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Color
The ground is off-white with some red and black particles visible under magnification (fig. 28.7).
169

Left side shows a dark brown, textured area with small lighter flecks. Center features a vertical pale beige band with repeated short dark brown marks and faint narrow ridges, while the right side is mottled pink and beige with scattered tiny dark specks and shallow pits. A black scale bar along the bottom is labeled 2.0 mm.
Monet 33.444 MIC 2
Left side of the frame holds a narrow, textured color panel, while the rest of the frame is solid black. In the panel, the top area is blue and purple, the middle has a green band, and a large rounded pink‑red mound sits slightly right of center with a darker pink base; the bottom blends gray, pink, and light green. A thin beige strip runs along the far left edge of the panel, and a small black-outlined square appears near the left edge at mid-height.
Detail Location

Fig. 28.7

Photomicrograph of the left edge of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing the ground layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Materials/composition
Analysis indicates the presence of the following components: lead white and calcium carbonate (chalk)[109], with traces of bone black, iron oxide, alumina, silica, various silicates.[110] Binder: Oil (estimated).170

Paint Layer

Application/technique and artist’s revision
The main compositional areas of the painting were laid in with subdued tones, in a rather open application that left localized areas of ground exposed. The lay-in of the sky, for example, varies slightly in color, from pale pink to pinkish-blue, but remains relatively light in tone where visible across the surface. In some areas, this underlayer appears solid and continuous while in others it exhibits open, sketchy brushwork that reveals the ground layer in places (fig. 28.8); and it does not extend all the way to the edges and corners of the painting, where the ground layer often remains visible (fig. 28.9). The hills and foliage in the distance appear to have been laid in with a light grayish-blue paint and then built up with more intense blues and greens (fig. 28.10). The paint of the small stack at left is fairly continuous, making it difficult to see the underlayers; however, the lowest layers, visible microscopically through cracks, appear to be a pale, dull green. The small stack was then built up using more intense green tones, which remain visible through breaks in the surface paint layers, which consist predominantly of red tones (fig. 28.11). The brushwork of the large stack at right is more open, revealing exposed ground and dull yellowish-green and pinkish underlayers (fig. 28.12). The field where the stacks are located appears to have been built up from a pale-toned lay-in that varies from pinkish-gray to light yellow (fig. 28.13). As observed elsewhere on the painting, the underpainting has an open, brushmarked appearance that allows the ground to show through in spots (fig. 28.14).
171

Top right contains a white scale bar labeled 2.0 mm. From top left to bottom right, pale blue-green raised ridges and small lumps cover a beige to light purple background. Near the center, a very thin dark line runs roughly left to right across the textured surface. The ridges are narrow and closely spaced, with gaps showing the background color.
Monet 33.444 MIC 14
Most of the image is solid black, with a small rectangular area in the bottom-left corner occupying a small portion of the overall space. Inside that rectangle, from top to bottom, the upper region is pale blue that blends into light yellow and soft pink toward the middle and lower areas. Along the bottom edge of the rectangle is a narrow, irregular dark blue‑green band stretching across its width. A small white-outlined rectangle sits in the upper-left part of the colored area.
Detail Location

Fig. 28.8

Photomicrograph of the sky in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the paint layers. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Figs. 28.9–29.13

At the top, a pale yellow and light green sky stretches across, fading to soft pink and peach near the horizon. Across the middle, a low band of blue-green land runs left to right. In the lower left foreground, a large rounded hill in brown and olive tones rises above the horizon, and near the right edge a small, dark vertical shape stands against the distant land.

Fig. 28.9


Detail of the sky in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing areas of exposed ground near the edges. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

From the top, a wide field of blue and purple fills most of the space, with scattered pink and faint teal streaks. Toward the center, small bumpy ridges create a mottled mix of lavender and blue, with a few thin orange marks along the left side. Near the bottom, green and yellow blend into a darker olive area that is largest in the lower-right corner, where the raised texture appears most pronounced.

Fig. 28.10


Detail of the hill in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the paint layers. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444. 

A large, rounded shape fills most of the center, colored in pink, red, and muted orange with a rough, uneven surface. From top to bottom, the upper area is lighter pink with small patches of gray and orange; the middle shows a darker, horizontal band of purplish-red; the lower area shifts to deeper red with scattered purple streaks. Along the edges, especially the upper-right and lower-left, faint green and yellow tones appear, framing the central form.

Fig. 28.11


Detail of the small wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the paint layers. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

From top to bottom, a pale yellow and pink sky sits over distant blue‑green hills and scattered trees. Centered is a very large conical mound in warm orange and pink, noticeably larger than the nearby trees. Along the bottom, muted gray, lavender, and green ground surrounds its base, with a small bump extending from the lower left edge.

Fig. 28.12


Detail of the large wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the paint layers. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444. 

Top area contains mottled coral-orange and pink with small touches of light green. Toward the center, colors shift to pale gray and lavender with scattered patches of pink and light blue. The bottom portion shows more green and purple with hints of yellow, merging into the central gray-lavender. No distinct objects or figures are visible.

Fig. 28.13


Detail of the field in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the painting from an initial pinkish-gray layer that is exposed through breaks in the brushwork. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444. 

Top area is mostly deep purple with smaller patches of green and blue, showing fine ridges and shiny highlights. Across the middle, colors shift to lighter purple and pale tan mingled with green, and the ridges run diagonally from left to right. Near the bottom, larger areas of purple and yellow-brown appear with a darker brown patch toward the lower right; a white scale bar at the upper right reads 5.0 mm.
Monet 33.444 MIC 11
Top left, the side of a large rounded haystack in reddish-orange occupies much of the left edge. Across the center and bottom, an open field stretches in mixed greens, pinks, and purples, with small brighter green patches near the lower edge; the haystack is the largest form. Along the upper middle background, a low band of green with blue and brown shapes runs across; no people or animals are visible.
Detail Location

Fig. 28.14

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing a brushmarked pinkish-gray underlayer that is exposed through breaks in the brushwork. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444. 

As the painting was built up, the artist seems to have worked across the entire canvas, moving back and forth between the different compositional elements. The painting was built up in an open network of superimposed brushstrokes that allows earlier layers to contribute to the final appearance. Cross-sectional views of the paint layers show the complex layering of the brushstrokes in areas (fig. 28.15). In the foreground, individual brushstrokes of different colors are applied over both dry and wet paint, but there is little actual wet-in-wet mixing or blending of colors (fig. 28.16). The brushwork in the sky is quite vigorous and textural, including several quickly executed, undulating zigzag strokes (fig. 28.17). The visual impact of this brushwork is somewhat subdued by the final paint application in the sky, which consists of more flatly applied paint that emphasizes the horizontal bands of color, particularly on the right side (fig. 28.18). These final applications in the sky include the orange, pink, and yellow strokes and also the more opaque blue and yellowish-green paints applied along the top and upper right edges, which seem to have been used to “finish” these sketchily painted areas where there was originally more exposed ground.[111] The warm pinkish-orange tones of the sunset are echoed in the final touches on the surface of the foliage, grass, and stacks, imparting a warm, pinkish tonality to the landscape. Other final touches to the work include the curved strokes of orange-brown used to delineate the foliage of the trees situated at the foot of the hills in the background (fig. 28.19). These final strokes were applied with a light touch that caused them to skip over the recesses in the paint surface below, emphasizing its texture. Similar light-handed strokes were used along the horizon.
172

A tiny horizontal fragment sits against a black background, with a 50 µm scale bar for scale. From top to bottom, the fragment shows a thin amber band, a wider green band mottled with darker spots and scattered small red dots, and a thicker white, bubbly-looking band. The strip tapers slightly toward the right edge, with uneven borders along the lower white layer.
Monet 33.444 _x1400_10x_dkfld_2
At the top, a pale sky shifts from light blue to bands of yellow and pink near the horizon. Across the middle, a dark blue‑green line of distant trees stretches left to right. In the lower half, two cone-shaped haystacks sit in a grassy field: a smaller one in the left midground and a larger one just right of center, both orange‑brown with touches of red. The foreground shows mottled green and purple grass.
Sample Location

Fig. 28.15

Photomicrograph of a cross section of the paint and ground layers of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing the complex buildup of paint layers in an area of the field. Original magnification: 200×. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444

Top area is filled with light pink, lavender, and pale yellow, with no distinct objects. Toward the middle and bottom, colors shift to greens, blues, and purples in irregular patches and streaks. A narrow vertical beige strip runs along the far left edge, and along the lower edge red letters form a signature-like line ending with “91.” No people or recognizable objects are visible.

Fig. 25.16


Detail of the lower left corner of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the paint layers. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

At the top, a wide band of mottled light and dark gray runs across, with a thinner horizontal strip just below it. In the center and lower half, two large mound-shaped forms are present, the left one smaller and the right one larger, each edged by lighter gray. Surrounding areas are filled with dense, streaky gray textures, and there is a small bright white spot near the center-left. Colors are shades of gray only, from white to black.
X-Ray
At the top, a pale sky blends yellow, pink, and light blue above a dark green-blue tree line stretching across the width. Below, the middle ground shows clusters of dark green trees and low, muted shapes along a gentle ridge. In the foreground, a field with green, lavender, and gray tones holds two conical haystacks: a large reddish-brown stack on the right in the front and a smaller, similarly colored stack on the left set farther back. Open ground with patchy grass lies between them.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray

Fig. 28.17

X-ray and natural-light details of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing vigorous zigzag brushstrokes used to build up the sky. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444. Interactive image.

Top area shows a wide sky that shifts from light blue at the top to pale green, yellow, and soft pink near the horizon. In the lower center, a rounded mound sits above a dark band, with low, darker shapes extending left and right along the bottom edge. The sky occupies most of the view, making the mound appear small in scale.

Fig. 28.18


Detail of the sky in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing the buildup of paint. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Top third shows a band of blue and purple with scattered green patches and a few pale blue streaks. Center-left features a large rounded mound-like form in warm pink and red, edged with darker maroon along the lower rim; it takes about one-third of the width and nearly half the height. Bottom and right areas are a mottled mix of light green, pink, and purple, with small irregular green shapes extending toward the right edge.

Fig. 28.19


Detail of the small stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing final strokes of orange-brown lightly dragged across the surface to delineate the foliage in the background. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Pronounced brushstrokes unrelated to the final composition indicate that the artist made changes to both of the stacks. The small stack was originally positioned further to the right and possibly slightly lower. The large stack was expanded along the left side, making it broader and slightly taller than it was in the initial lay-in (fig. 28.20). The texture of the brushstrokes used to outline the original placement of the stacks remains visible in raking light (fig. 28.21 and fig. 28.22). In the X-ray, earlier brushstrokes used to block in the horizon line can be seen to extend underneath the left edge of the large stack until it meets up with the original edge of the stack (fig. 28.23). Similarly, under magnification, the bluish-gray paint of the initial lay-in of the hills behind can be seen through breaks in the brushwork of the stack along the edges (fig. 28.24). In building up the painting, the horizon line itself was also altered. It was moved to a higher position on the canvas, using light strokes that allow paint from the sky to show through in places (fig. 28.25). The raising of the horizon line may have coincided with the changes made to the stacks, particularly the heightening of the large stack.[112] Where paint from the horizon and the top of the large stack extends up over the sky, the layers of the sky were dry, suggesting that some time elapsed between the original painting and the adjustments. The position of the two buildings in the middle ground was also shifted up slightly (fig. 28.26). The lower parts of these buildings (which are obscured somewhat by the reddish paint of the foliage applied on top) were laid in directly over the ground layer, whereas the roofs were painted on top of the foliage of the trees behind (fig. 28.27).
173

A pale sky of light blue, yellow, and pink spans the top, above a low band of blue-green trees on the horizon. Below, a flat field holds two rounded, conical haystacks: a large stack in the right foreground and a smaller one to the left at mid-distance. The ground is mottled with soft greens, purples, and browns, and no people or animals are present.
Natural Light
Top area shows a streaky gray sky. Across the middle runs a lighter gray horizontal band forming a horizon, with two large rounded mounds below it—the right mound is larger and darker, the left mound is smaller and lighter. The bottom area is a dark, uneven ground spanning the width, and the scene uses only black, white, and gray tones.
Transmitted Infrared (1.0–1.1 µm)
Top section shows a wide expanse of streaked light and dark gray. A thin, uneven horizontal band runs across the upper middle, with the area below containing two cone-like mounds: a smaller one just left of center and a larger one on the right. The bottom section is filled with dense, wavy gray textures, with tones ranging from pale gray to deep charcoal.
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
Transmitted Infrared
Alt text for the image
X-Ray

Fig. 28.20

X-ray, transmitted infrared (Fuji, 1.0–1.1 µm), and natural-light images of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing changes made to the wheat stacks. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444. Interactive image.

Top area is blue and purple with scattered pink cloud-like patches. Across the middle, a band of green and brown shapes forms a tree line with a few small light patches within it. In the foreground, left of center, a large rounded pink-red mound with a darker lower edge dominates the scene, resting on ground colored with mixed greens and pinks; it is the largest element compared to the smaller shapes behind it.

Fig. 28.21


Detail of the small wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing the texture of the brushwork from the earlier contour of the stack. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

At the top, a soft band of pale orange, pink, and light yellow sky stretches across. Below it, dark blue‑green hills run left to right with faint rounded tree shapes. In the foreground, a very large conical stack, like a haystack, fills the center in muted browns, reds, and purples, with the ground around it in purples and blues and a small low mound near the lower left.

Fig. 28.22


Raking-light detail of the large wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing the texture of the brushwork from the earlier contour of the stack. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Top area shows a wide band of medium gray with streaks. Across the middle runs a lighter horizontal band, with two cone-shaped dark mounds below it—the smaller near the left center and the larger near the right center—and a small bright spot between them. The bottom area is filled with dense, wavy dark-gray textures, with a darker vertical strip slightly left of center and short white tick marks along all four edges.
X-Ray
At the top, a wide sky shifts from pale yellow and peach near the horizon to light blue higher up. Along the horizon, a dark green-blue band of distant trees and low shapes stretches from left to right. In the foreground, two rounded haystacks in reddish-brown sit in a muted green and lavender field, with the larger haystack on the right closer to the viewer and the smaller one on the left set farther back.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray

Fig. 28.23

X-ray and natural-light details of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing that the horizon line continues underneath the left edge of the stack. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444. Interactive image.

At the top, a narrow band of light yellow and pink meets soft blue and blue‑green rounded forms on the left and right. In the center, a large triangular mound shape fills most of the view, colored warm pink, peach, and brown with touches of green and orange, rising to a rounded point near the upper middle. Along the bottom, muted pinks and mauves spread across a flat area, with no people or structures visible.

Fig. 28.24


Detail of the large wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing blue paint from the hill that continues under the left edge of the stack. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Top to bottom: a wide area of pale peach and pink fills the upper half. Across the center runs a thin, uneven dark blue horizontal band with a few small green patches along it. The lower half is mostly blue and purple, with cooler, darker tones toward the bottom; the green patches are small compared to the broad bands of pink and blue.

Fig. 28.25


Detail of the horizon in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing that the top of the hill was painted over the sky. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

From top to bottom, a wide band of mottled light and dark gray spans the upper area, with a thin horizontal line running across just below it. In the middle, two rounded mound shapes sit on a textured surface—the left one smaller and lighter, the right one larger and darker—with a small light patch between them. The lower area is densely streaked with diagonal gray textures, and the palette is black, white, and various shades of gray.
X-Ray
At the top, a wide sky shifts from light yellow and peach near the horizon to pale blue higher up. Across the middle, a dark green and blue tree line runs left to right with a few small, low buildings tucked among the trees. In the foreground, a muted green and purple field holds two rounded, cone-shaped haystacks: the larger and closer one on the right in warm reddish-brown tones, and a smaller one on the left in similar colors.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray

Fig. 28.26

X-ray and natural-light details of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing changes made to the composition. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444. Interactive image.

Top edge shows irregular ridges and pits with mixed pink, blue-gray, and tan areas. From top to bottom, broad swaths of pink and purple run left to right, broken by scattered tan patches and small pale blue and white flecks; fine dark lines appear mainly toward the lower left. Bottom section shifts to more purple and tan with fewer light flecks, and a 5.0 mm scale bar appears at the top right.
Monet 33.444 MIC 18
Most of the frame is solid black, with a small rectangular scene in the lower-left corner. In that scene, from top to bottom: a narrow band of pale yellow and pink, a blue‑green horizontal band, then rounded green, blue, and reddish‑brown shapes filling the lower area, with a pinkish slanted wedge at the far right. A thin black rectangle is positioned near the lower center of the colored section.
Detail Location

Fig. 28.27

Photomicrograph of the roof of a building in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing that it was painted on top of the hill. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Overall, the painting has a rather rough, textural surface, owing to a buildup of brushwork that includes textural brushstrokes and low impasto, some of which are related to elements of the earlier version of the composition, as well as the texture of the canvas weave, which remains prominent. The liberal use of lightly applied strokes that skip across the highpoints of the underlying paint further accentuate the surface texture. There are many tiny bubble holes in the paint layers visible under magnification. An anomalous area of brownish-gray paint near the right edge, beginning just above the horizon, appears to be an accidental accretion, that is, wet paint coming into contact with the surface, possibly related to framing. It looks like the extraneous paint may have been lightly wiped (fig. 28.28, fig. 28.29).
174

Top area shows a sky in soft yellow, light green, and pink. Left side has a large diagonal hillside in brown and pink that slopes down toward the center. From the middle to the right, rolling blue-green and purple terrain fills the scene with scattered dark green patches, and a narrow light vertical band edges the far right.

Fig. 28.28


Detail of the right edge of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing an accidental smudge of brownish-gray paint. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Top right shows a white line labeled 1.0 cm as a scale marker. From top to bottom, light tan and beige areas are dotted with dark brown spots; the left side has faint horizontal ridges, and the center has a darker brown vertical band. Toward the right and lower sections, the texture is densely pitted with cream and tan speckles, while the bottom left mixes dark brown and purple-brown patches with a few small blue flecks.
Monet 33.444 MIC 16
Top and center are solid black, filling most of the frame. In the lower-left corner, a small scene shows a rounded hill on the left in brown and green, a blue‑green band of distant land across the middle, and a pale yellow to pink sky above. Along the right edge of this scene is a narrow vertical gray‑green strip with a small white outlined square near the lower right.
Detail Location

Fig. 28.29

Photomicrograph of the right edge of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) showing an accidental smudge of brownish-gray paint that may have been partially wiped away. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

Painting tools
Brushes, including 1–2 cm width, flat ferrule (based on width and shape of brushstrokes). There are several brush hairs embedded in the paint layer.175

Palette
Analysis indicates the presence of the following pigments: lead white, cadmium yellow, chrome yellow, vermilion, red lake, viridian, emerald green, cobalt blue, and ultramarine blue.[113] UV fluorescence suggests the use of red lake throughout the landscape.[114]176

Binding media
Oil (estimated).[115]177

Surface Finish

Varnish layer/media
The painting is currently unvarnished (see Conservation History). The surface has a soft, matte finish with subtle variations in gloss depending on the qualities of the paint. In 1959 the surface was described as heavily varnished and yellowed; the origin of that varnish was not documented.178

Conservation History

In 1959 the back of the canvas was vacuumed, the stretcher keys were fixed, and an impregnated “CCA” fiberboard backing and metal strip molding were applied. The paint surface was superficially cleaned.[116]179

In 1971 surface grime was removed.[117]180

In 1974 a discolored surface film was removed. The canvas was wax-resin lined and restretched on an ICA spring stretcher. A layer of polyvinyl acetate (PVA) AYAA was applied. Minimal inpainting was carried out. A layer of methacrylate resin L-46 was applied, followed by a layer of AYAA.[118]181

In 1993 the AYAA and methacrylate varnish layers applied in 1974 were removed. Residues of starch paste were removed mechanically. The wax-resin lining was removed from the painting, and excess wax-resin adhesive was removed from the back of the canvas. The tacking margins were strip lined and a loose lining was attached to the stretcher. Minimal inpainting was carried out. The painting was left unvarnished.[119]182

Condition Summary

The painting is in good condition. The original canvas is strip lined and stretched taut and in plane over a loose lining with panel inserts (the 1974 wax-resin lining was removed in 1993). All of the original tacking margins are intact. The paint layer is secure. There are only a few tiny paint losses, in addition to some abrasion, pinpoint losses, and marks from the frame rebate around the edges. There are some areas of pressed or flattened paint in the rebate area, which seem to be the result of framing while the paint was still soft. Some areas of more textural paint application have a slightly flattened quality, with some moating, which probably occurred during the wax-resin-lining procedure. There are light mechanical cracks, mainly in areas of thick paint or layered applications and mostly visible only under low magnification. A fine, horizontal gouge (5.0 cm long) in the sky, near the upper left corner, occurred when the paint was still wet. There are several brush hairs embedded in the paint layer. The painting is currently unvarnished. There are scattered residues of starch paste and wax-resin adhesive from the lining process, as well as yellowed varnish residues in the recesses of the paint texture. The starch paste imparts a light scattering quality where it is concentrated.

Kimberley Muir183

Frame

The current frame appears to be original to the painting. It is a French, late-nineteenth–early-twentieth-century, Louis XVI Revival, gilt, ogee frame with cast center and corner cartouches with fleur-de-lis on a diamond bed with linked foliate scrollwork and strapwork on a quadrillage bed, ending in a quirked torus and a sanded frieze with an ogee with leaf-tip molding on a recut bed at the sight edge. The construction is mitered and nailed. The back of the frame has been planed flat, removing all construction history and provenance. A back frame has been glued to the back, and all back surfaces and interior have been overpainted. The finish is oil and water gilding over red bole on cast plaster and gesso. The ornament and sight molding were selectively burnished. The torus was burnished. The toning is casein or gouache with gray overwash and whitish gray flecking. Much of the original toning has been removed, and the gilding has been rubbed heavily, altering the original balance with the painting. The molding, from perimeter to interior, is fillet with dentil motif; cove side; ogee with cast center and corner cartouches with fleur-de-lis on a diamond bed with linked foliate scrollwork and strapwork on a quadrillage bed; quirked torus; sanded frieze; and ogee with leaf tip on a re-cut ground (fig. 28.30, fig. 28.31).[120]
184

At the top, a pale blue sky fades to soft pink and yellow near the horizon. Across the middle, a dark green band of trees and low blue hills stretches left to right. In the foreground, a grassy field in greens and purples contains two rounded haystacks in pinkish-brown tones, with a larger stack on the right and a smaller one on the left, the right one appearing closer.

Fig. 28.30


Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) in its original frame. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.444.

A museum gallery in black and white, with the wall label reading “THE POTTER PALMER AND BERTHA HONORE PALMER GALLERY” near the top. Across the middle, five medium-sized framed landscape scenes hang in a row, with a long bench and a low rope barrier in front; several adults stand spaced along the wall viewing them. In the foreground, an adult in a dark suit and tie stands at the left, and an older adult with short hair wearing a light jacket and scarf stands at the right, both facing away from the pictures. Clothing and objects appear in shades of black, white, and gray.

Fig. 28.31


Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) in its original frame, gallery installation. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

Kirk Vuillemot
185

Sold by the artist to Durand-Ruel, Paris, July 2, 1891, for 3,200 francs.[121]186

Sold by Durand-Ruel, New York, to Potter Palmer, Chicago, July 2, 1891, for $1,200 (or 6,000 francs).[122]187

Acquired by Durand-Ruel, New York, by Mar. 7, 1892.[123]188

Sold by Durand-Ruel, New York, to Potter Palmer, Chicago, Mar. 7, 1892, for $1,500.[124]189

Sold by Potter Palmer, Chicago, to Durand-Ruel, New York, by Apr. 19, 1892.[125]190

Sold by Durand-Ruel, New York, to Sir William Van Horne, Montreal, Apr. 19, 1892, for $1,250.[126]191

Acquired by Durand-Ruel, New York, by Nov. 22, 1892.[127]192

Sold by Durand-Ruel, New York, to Potter Palmer, Chicago, Nov. 22, 1892, for $1,200.[128]193

Acquired by Howard Young, New York, by 1932.[129]194

Acquired by Mrs. Lewis Larned (Annie Swan) Coburn, Chicago, by 1932.[130]195

Bequeathed by Mrs. Lewis Larned (Annie Swan) Coburn (died 1932), Chicago, to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.
196

Art Institute of Chicago, Exhibition of the Mrs. L. L. Coburn Collection: Modern Paintings and Watercolors, Apr. 6–Oct. 9, 1932, cat. 24.197

Toledo (Ohio) Museum of Art, Artists Unappreciated in Their Day, Nov. 5–Dec. 10, 1939, cat. 16 (ill.).198

Seattle Art Museum, Volunteer Park, Exhibition Monet and Pissarro, Nov. 21, 1944–Jan. 24, 1945, no cat.[131]199

Englewood (Ill.) High School, Feb. 6–Mar. 6, 1945, no cat.[132]200

Art Institute of Chicago, The Paintings of Claude Monet, Apr. 1–June 15, 1957, no cat. no.[133]201

New York, Museum of Modern Art, Claude Monet: Seasons and Moments, Mar. 9–May 15, 1960, cat. 48 (ill.); Los Angeles County Museum of Art, June 14–Aug. 7, 1960.202

Iowa City, University of Iowa Gallery of Art, Impressionism and Its Roots, Nov. 8–Dec. 6, 1964, cat. 35 (ill.).203

Pasadena (Calif.) Art Museum (sponsored by the Art Alliance), Serial Imagery, Sept. 17–Oct. 27, 1968, cat. 1; Seattle, Henry Art Gallery, University of Washington, Nov. 17–Dec. 22, 1968; Santa Barbara (Calif.) Museum of Art, Jan. 25–Feb. 23, 1969 (Seattle only).[134]204

Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings by Monet, Mar. 15–May 11, 1975, cat. 85 (ill.). (fig. 28.32)
205

On a beige gallery wall, three ornate gold-colored frames hang in a row. From left to right: the first, wide frame shows a field with two conical haystacks, distant blue hills, and a pale pink sky; the middle frame shows green and yellow trees beside blue water; the right, smaller frame shows another field with haystacks, low blue hills, and a soft gray-pink sky. Small black wall labels with white numbers are mounted near each frame.

Fig. 28.32


Installation of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) in Paintings by Monet, Art Institute of Chicago, Mar. 15–May 11, 1975. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Monet’s Years at Giverny: Beyond Impressionism, Apr. 19–July 9, 1978, cat. 15 (ill.); Saint Louis Art Museum, Aug. 1–Oct. 8, 1978.206

Los Angeles County Museum of Art, A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, June 28–Sept. 16, 1984, cat. 105 (ill.); Art Institute of Chicago, Oct. 23, 1984–Jan. 6, 1985; Paris, Galeries Nationales d’Exposition, Grand Palais, as L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, Feb. 4–Apr. 22, 1985.[135]207

Art Institute of Chicago, The Art of the Edge: European Frames, 1300–1900, Oct. 17–Dec. 14, 1986, not in cat.[136]208

Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg), State Hermitage Museum, Ot Delakrua do Matissa: Shedevry frantsuzskoi zhivopisi XIX–nachala XX veka, iz Muzeia Metropoliten v N’iu-Iorke i Khudozhestvennogo Instituta v Chikago [From Delacroix to Matisse: Masterpieces of French Painting of the Nineteenth to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, and the Art Institute of Chicago], Mar. 15–May 16, 1988, cat. 31 (ill.); Moscow, Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, May 30–July 30, 1988.209

Boston, Museum of Fine Arts, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, Feb. 7–Apr. 29, 1990, cat. 18 (ill.); Art Institute of Chicago, May 19–Aug. 12, 1990; London, Royal Academy of Arts, Sept. 7–Dec. 9, 1990 (Boston and Chicago only).[137]210

Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago’s Dream, a World’s Treasure: The Art Institute of Chicago, 1893–1993, Nov. 1–Jan. 9, 1994, not in cat.[138]211

Art Institute of Chicago, Claude Monet, 1840–1926, July 22–Nov. 26, 1995, cat. 98 (ill.). (fig. 28.33)
212

Left to right, a dark brown wall holds a partially visible framed picture at the far left, two wall panels with white text and a small color image, then two gold-framed rectangular scenes of fields. Both central pictures show cone-shaped haystacks in open land with pale blue and pink skies; the one on the right appears slightly larger and hangs on the adjoining wall near the corner. In the foreground, a herringbone-patterned medium-brown floor spans the room, with low silver posts and a thin rope forming a barrier a few feet from the wall.

Fig. 28.33


Installation of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91) in Claude Monet, 1840–1926, Art Institute of Chicago, July 22–Nov. 26, 1995. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

Baltimore Museum of Art, In Monet’s Light: Theodore Robinson at Giverny, Oct. 17, 2004–Jan. 9, 2005, no cat. no. (ill.); Phoenix Museum of Art, Feb. 6–May 8, 2005; Hartford, Conn., Wadsworth Atheneum, June 4–Sept. 4, 2005.213

Fort Worth, Tex., Kimbell Museum of Art, The Impressionists: Master Paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago, June 29–Nov. 2, 2008, cat. 76 (ill.).214

Sydney, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Paths to Abstraction 1867–1917, June 26–Sept. 19, 2010, no cat. no. (ill.).
215

Art Institute of Chicago, Exhibition of the Mrs. L. L. Coburn Collection: Modern Paintings and Watercolors, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago, 1932), pp. 19–20, cat. 24.216

Daniel Catton Rich, “The Bequest of Mrs. L. L. Coburn,” Bulletin of the Art Institute of Chicago 26, 6 (Nov. 1932), p. 66.217

Toledo Museum of Art, Catalogue: Artists Unappreciated in their Day, exh. cat. (Toledo Museum of Art, 1939), pp. 2; 27, cat. 16 (ill.).218

Art Institute of Chicago, “Catalogue,” Art Institute of Chicago Quarterly 51, 2 (Apr. 1, 1957), p. 33.219

William C. Seitz, Claude Monet: Seasons and Moments, exh. cat. (Museum of Modern Art, New York/Los Angeles County Museum of Art/Doubleday, 1960), pp. 25 (ill.); 61, cat. 48.220

Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings in the Art Institute of Chicago: A Catalogue of the Picture Collection (Art Institute of Chicago, 1961), p. 321.[139]221

John Rewald, The History of Impressionism, rev. ed. (Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1961), p. 563 (ill.).[140]222

Frank Seiberling, “A Guide to the Exhibition,” in University of Iowa Gallery of Art, Impressionism and Its Roots, exh. cat. (University of Iowa Gallery of Art, 1964), p. 7.223

University of Iowa Gallery of Art, Impressionism and Its Roots, exh. cat. (University of Iowa Gallery of Art, 1964), pp. 40–41, cat. 35 (ill.).224

Katharine Kuh, Break-up: The Core of Modern Art (New York Graphic Society, 1965), pp. 16–18, pl. 2; 134.225

John Coplans, Serial Imagery, exh. cat. (Pasadena Art Museum, 1968), p. 139, cat. 1.226

Grace Seiberling, “The Evolution of an Impressionist,” in Paintings by Monet, ed. Susan Wise, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago, 1975), pp. 32, 33.227

Susan Wise, ed., Paintings by Monet, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago, 1975), p. 142, cat. 85 (ill.).228

Metropolitan Museum of Art, Monet’s Years at Giverny: Beyond Impressionism, exh. cat. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1978), pp. 58, cat. 15 (ill.); 156.229

Daniel Wildenstein, “Monet’s Giverny,” in Metropolitan Museum of Art, Monet’s Years at Giverny: Beyond Impressionism, exh. cat. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1978), p. 21.230

Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, Peintures, 1887–1898 (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), pp. 38; 138; 139, cat. 1270 (ill.).231

Grace Seiberling, Monet’s Series (Garland, 1981), pp. 97; 357, no. 14; 421, fig. 13.232

J. Patrice Marandel, The Art Institute of Chicago: Favorite Impressionist Paintings (Cross River, 1979), pp. 60–61 (ill.).233

Diane Kelder, The Great Book of French Impressionism (Abbeville, 1980), pp. 183, 213 (ill.), 437.[141]234

Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 (Fall 1984), pp. 6; 12–13, pl. 4; 21, nn. 6, 7, 17, 20.235

Richard R. Brettell, “The Fields of France,” in A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, ed. Andrea P. A. Belloli, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), pp. 260; 262; 264, cat. 105 (ill.); 364.236

Richard R. Brettell, “La campagne française,” in Réunion des Musées Nationaux, L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, exh. cat. (Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1985), pp. 282–84, cat. 105 (ill.); 285–91.237

John House, “Monet and the Genesis of His Series,” in Auckland City Art Gallery, Claude Monet: Painter of Light, exh. cat. (Auckland City Art Gallery/NZI, 1985), pp. 19; 20, fig. 10; 21.238

John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1986), p. 27, pl. 33.239

Helen Langdon, Impressionist Seasons (Phaidon, 1986), p. 56, pl. 21.240

Richard R. Brettell, Post-Impressionists (Art Institute of Chicago/Abrams, 1987), pp. 35, 36 (ill.), 118.241

Ministry of Culture, SSSR; State Hermitage Museum; Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; and Art Institute of Chicago, Ot Delakrua do Matissa: Shedevry frantsuzskoi zhivopisi XIX–nachala XX veka, iz Muzeia Metropoliten v N’iu-Iorke i Khudozhestvennogo Instituta v Chikago [From Delacroix to Matisse: Masterpieces of French Painting of the Nineteenth to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, and the Art Institute of Chicago], trans. from English by Iu. A. Kleiner and A. A. Zhukov, exh. cat. (Avrora, 1988), pp. 84–85, cat. 31 (ill.).242

Janet M. Brooke, Discerning Tastes: Montreal Collectors, 1880–1920, exh. cat. (Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, 1989), pp. 135; 136, fig. 64; 137, n. 9; 215, no. 882.243

Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), pp. 3; 77; 79, pl. 21; 296, cat. 18.244

John Sallis, “Monet’s Grainstacks: Shades of Time,” Tema Celeste International Art Magazine 30 (Mar.–Apr. 1991), p. 67, n.12.245

Anne Rorimer, “The Date Paintings of On Kawara,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 17, 2 (1991), p. 122, fig. 2.246

Virginia Spate, Claude Monet: Life and Work (Rizzoli/Thames & Hudson, 1992), pp. 207; 209, ill. 224.247

Andrew Forge, Monet, Artists in Focus (Art Institute of Chicago, 1995), pp. 44; 49; 87, pl. 16; 108.248

Charles F. Stuckey, with the assistance of Sophia Shaw, Claude Monet, 1840–1926, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago/Thames & Hudson, 1995), p. 119, cat. 98 (ill.)249

Daniel Wildenstein, Monet, or The Triumph of Impressionism, cat. rais., vol. 1 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 266–67, cat. 1270 (ill.); 275.250

Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 483; 485, cat. 1270 (ill.).251

Karin Sagner-Düchting, “Monet’s Late Work from the Vantage Point of Modernism,” in Monet and Modernism, ed. Karin Sagner-Düchting, exh. cat. (Prestel, 2001), p. 25.252

Gottfried Boehm, “‘Work’ and ‘Series’: Problems in Modern Conceptions of Pictorial Structure Since Monet,” in Monet and Modernism, ed. Karin Sagner-Düchting, exh. cat. (Prestel, 2001), pp. 154–55 (ill.).253

Richard R. Brettell, From Monet to Van Gogh: A History of Impressionism, vol. 2 (Teaching Co., 2002), pp. 161, 166, 183.254

Sona Johnston, In Monet’s Light: Theodore Robinson at Giverny, with an essay by Paul Tucker, exh. cat. (Baltimore Museum of Art/Philip Wilson, 2004), pp. 162, fig. 1; 163.255

Norio Shimada, Inshoha bijutsukan [The history of Impressionism] (Shogakukan, 2004), p. 279 (ill.).256

Barry Venning, “Turner, Monet e l’impressionismo,” in Turner e gli impressionisti: La grande storia del paesaggio moderno in Europa, ed. Marco Goldin, exh. cat. (Linea d’Ombra, 2006), p. 76 (ill.).257

Norio Shimada, Claude Monet, Great Masters of Western Art 1 (Shogakukan, 2006), p. 89 (ill.).258

Akiko Mabuchi, “Monet—découverte du corps et des sensations” (trans. from the Japanese by Erika Peschard-Erlih), in National Art Center, Tokyo, Monet: L’art de Monet et sa postérité, exh. cat. (National Art Center, Tokyo, 2007), pp. 29, fig. 20; 30; 246.259

Eric M. Zafran, “Monet in America,” in Wildenstein and Co., Claude Monet (1840–1926): A Tribute to Daniel Wildenstein and Katia Granoff, exh. cat. (Wildenstein, 2007), p. 127.260

Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Impressionists: Master Paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago/Kimbell Art Museum, 2008), pp. 22; 103; 108; 156; 157, cat. 76 (ill.). Simultaneously published as Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Age of Impressionism at the Art Institute of Chicago (Art Institute of Chicago/Yale University Press, 2008), pp. 22; 103; 108; 156; 157, cat. 76 (ill.).[142]261

Iris Schaefer, Caroline von Saint-George, and Katja Lewerentz, Impressionismus: Wie das Licht auf die Leinwand kam, exh. cat. (Wallraf-Richartz-Museum & Fondation Corboud/Skira, 2008), pp. 23, abb. 9; 26. Translated as Painting Light: The Hidden Techniques of the Impressionists, exh. cat. (Wallraf-Richartz-Museum & Fondation Corboud/Skira, 2008), pp. 23, ill. 9; 26.262

Iris Schaefer, Caroline von Saint-George, and Katja Lewerentz, Impressionismo: Dipingere la luce, Le tecniche nascoste de Monet, Renoir e Van Gogh, ed. Monica Maroni, exh. cat. (Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi/Wallraf-Richartz-Museum & Foundation Corboud/Skira, 2008), pp. 23, ill. 9; 26.263

Christie’s, London, Post-War and Contemporary Art, sale cat. (Christie’s, July 1, 2010, day auction), p. 126 (ill.).264

Terence Maloon, ed., Paths to Abstraction, 1867–1917, exh. cat. (Art Gallery of New South Wales, 2010), p. 108 (ill.).265

John Updike, Always Looking: Essays on Art, ed. Christopher Carduff (Knopf, 2012), pp. 74–75 (ill.).
266

Archival Documentation from the Durand-Ruel Archives

Inventory number
Stock Durand-Ruel Paris 1063
Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book 1891–1901, and from Brouillard 1888–1891[143]267

Inventory number
Stock Durand-Ruel New York 859
Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book 1888–1893[144]268

Inventory number
Stock Durand-Ruel New York 924
Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book 1888–1893[145]269

Inventory number
Stock Durand-Ruel New York 948
Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book 1888–1893[146]270

Other Documents

Label (fig. 28.34/(fig. 28.35)[147]
271

At the top, a worn reddish-brown paper label shows bold black printed text “DURAND-RUEL,” with lines beneath reading “PARIS, 16, Rue Laffitte” and “NEW YORK, 315 Fifth Avenue.” Below a short horizontal rule, black cursive handwriting on dotted lines reads “Ch. Monet”; to the right appears “No” with overwritten numerals, and a faint purple “942” sits in the upper right corner. The next dotted line reads “Meules – fin de l’été,” and the bottom line reads “mars.” Edges are slightly creased with small tears.

Fig. 28.34


Top to bottom, a large rectangular frame fills most of the view, with two wide, light‑gray panels separated by a vertical bar in the middle; thin dark gaps around the edges show the background. Along the top and bottom edges are small rectangular tabs at the corners and near the center, and the rim has irregular patches in light and dark gray. On the central bar are two labels with printed text, smaller stickers appear near the top, handwriting runs along the left border, and a ruler-like strip stands at the far right.

Fig. 28.35


Label (fig. 28.36)[148] 
272

A brown paper label with cut corners and a red double border is centered on a dark background. From top to bottom, dark handwritten text reads “1145” at the top, “Monet” in the middle, and “moss” near the bottom. A thin horizontal crack runs across the upper third of the label, and a faint curved mark appears along the left side.

Fig. 28.36


Label (fig. 28.37)[149]
273

Rectangular, faded dark pink paper label with black text reads, from top to bottom: “DURAND-RUEL,” then “PARIS, 16, Rue Laffitte,” and “NEW YORK, 315 Fifth Avenue.” Midsection shows underlined cursive “Claude Monet” with “No. 853” to the right. Lower lines in cursive read “Meules — fin de l’Ete” and “paysage … Giverny,” with an additional word at the bottom right that appears as “masss”; a small notch is missing at the bottom edge.

Fig. 28.37


Inscription (fig. 28.38)[150]
274

Dark and medium gray background with horizontal, grain-like lines; a small round knot shape sits near the top right, and a lighter smudge appears near the top center. Across the middle, a pale diagonal streak runs from lower left toward upper right, with large dark, loosely drawn letter-like marks over it that resemble B, R, and Y/J from left to right. Near the bottom left, smaller curved scribbles appear against a slightly darker gray area.

Fig. 28.38


Inscription (fig. 28.39)[151]
275

Across the center, dark gray handwritten characters run left to right on a medium-gray surface with fine vertical lines. The text appears to read “DR A?Y 947,” with “DR” on the far left and “947” on the right; the middle character(s) are unclear. No other distinct elements or figures are visible.

Fig. 28.39


Labels and Inscriptions

Undated

Label
Location: frame
Method: handwritten script
Content: 15 / Art Institute / of Chicago (fig. 28.40)
276

A small cream card with rounded corners sits on a brown wooden surface. From top to bottom, gray pencil writing reads “15,” then “Our Districts,” and on the bottom line “of Chicago.” The card fills most of the frame, with a thin border of brown wood visible around the edges.

Fig. 28.40


Number
Location: frame
Method: handwritten script
Content: 1933.444 (fig. 28.41)
277

Top edge shows a narrow gray strip running horizontally. Below it, a broad brown wooden surface with scattered light scuffs and worn patches fills most of the view. Near the upper center-right of the wood, dark handwritten numbers read “1933. 444,” roughly spanning a small portion of the width.

Fig. 28.41


Pre-1980

Label
Location: pre-1974-treatment stretcher (discarded); preserved in conservation file
Method: handwritten script
Content: 1145 / Monet / moss (fig. 28.42)
278

At center sits a brown, octagonal-cornered label with a red double-line border. From top to bottom, dark handwritten text reads “1145” on the upper portion, “Monet” in the middle, and “moss” near the bottom. A thin horizontal crack runs across the upper third from left to right, and a faint gray curved line appears along the left edge.

Fig. 28.42


Label
Location: pre-1974-treatment stretcher (discarded); preserved in conservation file
Method: handwritten script on printed label
Content: DURAND-RUEL 948 / PARIS, 16, Rue Laffitte / NEW YORK, 315 Fifth Avenue / Cl. Monet No 924 [crossed out in pencil and 948 written at top in pencil] / Meules – fin de l’Eté / mass (fig. 28.43)
279

Reddish-brown rectangular label with black printed and handwritten text. From top to bottom, printed lines read DURAND-RUEL, PARIS, 16, Rue Laffitte, and NEW YORK, 315 Fifth Avenue; a pencil note “942” appears at the upper right. Below a short horizontal line, black cursive handwriting on the left reads “Cl. Monet,” on the right “No.” followed by an unclear number; the next line reads “Meules – fin de l’Été,” and the bottom line reads “mars.”

Fig. 28.43


Label
Location: pre-1974-treatment stretcher (discarded); preserved in conservation file
Method: handwritten script on printed label
Content: DURAND-RUEL / PARIS, 16, Rue Laffitte / NEW YORK, 315 Fifth Avenue / Claude Monet / No 853 / Meules – fin de l’Eté / paysage de Giverny / masss[152] (fig. 28.44)
280

Rectangular reddish-pink paper label with black printed and handwritten text, arranged in lines from top to bottom. Printed: DURAND-RUEL; PARIS, 16, Rue Laffitte; NEW YORK, 315 Fifth Avenue. Handwritten across the middle and lower lines: Claude Monet — No. 853; Meules—fin de l’Ete; paysage de Giverny; an additional word at the bottom right is unclear. A small notch is missing at the center of the bottom edge, and the edges appear darker than the center.

Fig. 28.44


Label
Location: pre-1974-treatment stretcher (discarded); preserved in conservation file
Method: handwritten script and stamp on printed label
Content: MAPLE & C […] / 31 5, Rue Boudr[…] / peinture reparé [?] / champs: foins / en Meules coupé / Signé / Claude Monet
Stamp: MONS POT PALMERS (fig. 28.45, fig. 28.46)
281

A worn light-brown paper label fills the frame, bordered by a thin black double line, with a frayed right edge and small tears along the left and bottom. At the top center-left, large black printed letters read “MAPLE & C,” and a dark gray handwritten “31” sits to the left. Below, smaller black print reads “5, Rue Boud…” with the rest faded, and faint pencil writing crosses the middle. In the lower half, a purple stamped line reads “MONS POT …” with the remaining letters unclear, above dotted guide lines and smudges.

Fig. 28.45


From top to bottom, a bordered rectangular label in grayscale shows large black printed text “MAPLE &” and, below, a smaller line reading “5, Rue Boud…” with the right side cut off. The middle and lower areas contain faint gray handwritten cursive that is partly legible; visible words include “Signé” and “Claude Monet,” with other words unclear. Large printed letters occupy the top section, while smaller cursive writing spans the lower half, and the label sits against a textured gray background with cropped left and right edges.

Fig. 28.46


Inscription
Location: pre-1974-treatment stretcher (discarded); 1974 photograph in conservation file
Method: handwritten script
Content: DR NY.948 (fig. 28.47)
282

Dark gray background with subtle vertical streaks fills the frame. Across the center from left to right, faded black characters form a short string that reads “DR … 947,” with the middle letters indistinct. The text is the only subject, spanning a narrow horizontal band in the middle.

Fig. 28.47


Number
Location: pre-1974-treatment stretcher (discarded); 1974 photograph in conservation file
Method: handwritten script
Content: 30 [?] (fig. 28.48)
283

Top to bottom: a narrow dark gray strip runs across the upper edge. In the center, a rough light-to-medium gray surface shows two small round holes (one near the upper center, another below it) and several dark gray curved, looping lines. On the left side, layered and torn areas create a small triangular flap sticking outward. Along the bottom, a lighter gray band has cracks and a thin dark line near the lower edge.

Fig. 28.48


Inscription
Location: pre-1974-treatment stretcher (discarded); 1974 photograph in conservation file
Method: handwritten script
Content: D R N Y / […] (fig. 28.49)
284

Top section shows a horizontally oriented surface in shades of gray with fine grain lines, with a small circular opening near the upper right. Across the center, large, faint dark curved strokes and loops extend left to right, intersected by a lighter, elongated smudge that angles diagonally. The lower area continues the grain pattern with additional faint loops; the circular opening is small compared to the overall surface, while the markings span most of the width.

Fig. 28.49


Inscription
Location: pre-1974-treatment stretcher (discarded); 1974 photograph in conservation file
Method: handwritten script
Content: […] / Bas droite / (85[3?]) (fig. 28.50)
285

Rectangular, gray-toned surface with a rough, torn top edge; a thin dark line runs along the upper right. In the center, a large scuffed patch with peeling areas contains two small round holes and faint diagonal cursive writing—“Bas” is readable, while the rest is unclear. Near the lower edge, a thin light strip sits above a darker horizontal band.

Fig. 28.50


Number
Location: pre-1974-treatment stretcher (discarded); 1974 photograph in conservation file
Method: handwritten script
Content: 33.444 (fig. 28.51)
286

Top edge shows a narrow light gray strip beneath a darker band. Across the center, a medium-gray surface has shallow scratched digits reading “33 444” slightly left of center, with a small round hole to the right and a rough patch on the far left edge. Bottom area is mostly smooth medium gray with a few tiny white specks; the digits and hole are small compared with the overall surface.

Fig. 28.51


Post-1980

Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO / artist Claude Monet / title Haystacks, End of Day, Autumn. 1891 / medium oil on canvas / credit M/M L.L. Coburn / acct.# 1933.444 (fig. 28.52)
287

A rectangular off-white museum label with black text. Centered at the top: “THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO.” Below, a left column lists “artist,” “title,” “medium,” “credit,” and “acct. #,” with entries to the right reading “Claude Monet,” “Haystacks, End of Day, Autumn. 1891,” “oil on canvas,” “M/M L.L. Coburn,” and “1933.444.”

Fig. 28.52


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with typewritten script
Content: Museum of Fine Arts / Boston, MA 02115 / W. 1270 GRAINSTACK / Art I., Chicago (fig. 28.53)
288

Rectangular beige sticker with rounded corners, showing blue and black text. Top center reads in blue: “Museum of Fine Arts” on one line and “Boston, MA 02115” beneath it. Middle line in black says “W. 1270 GRAINSTACK,” underlined in blue with a small blue dot to the left; a tiny black speck sits below this line. Bottom line in black reads “Art I., Chicago,” also underlined in blue with another blue dot at the left.

Fig. 28.53


Label
Location: not documented; preserved in conservation file
Method: printed label with typewritten script
Content: Museum of Fine Arts / Boston, MA 02115 / W. 1270 GRAINSTACK / Art I., Chicago (fig. 28.54)
289

Small gray rectangular label with rounded corners, shown on a dark background, with small blue dots along the left edge. Top to bottom: blue text reads “Museum of Fine Arts” on the first line and “Boston, MA 02115” on the second. The middle line in black reads “W. 1270 GRAINSTAC…” with a blue underline, the last word cut off on the right. The bottom line in black reads “Art I., Chicago,” also underlined in blue.

Fig. 28.54


Label
Location: frame
Method: printed label with handwritten correction
Content: SL 78.19.1[“2” written over final “1”] / MonetatGiverny / ArtInstofChicago (fig. 28.55)
290

Small off-white rectangular paper label with rounded corners and slightly worn edges. Top line reads “SL 78.19.” with a small blue handwritten mark above the final period. Second line reads “MonetatGiverny,” and the third line reads “ArtInstofChicago,” all in black type.

Fig. 28.55


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: MONET IN THE ’90s: / THE SERIES PAINTINGS / Museum of Fine Arts, Boston / Feb 7 – Apr 29, 1990 / Art Institute of Chicago / May 19 – Aug 12, 1990 / Royal Academy, London / Sep 7 – Dec 9, 1990 / CAT# : 18 W: 1270 / TITLE: Grainstacks (End of day; autumn) / LENDER: The Art Institute of Chicago (fig. 28.56)291

Rectangular beige label with rounded corners and brown speckles on a light surface. Top to bottom, black text reads: “MONET IN THE ’90s: THE SERIES PAINTINGS; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Feb 7 - Apr 29, 1990; Art Institute of Chicago; May 19 - Aug 12, 1990; Royal Academy, London; Sep 7 - Dec 9, 1990.” Near the bottom it lists: “CAT#: 18 W: 1270,” “TITLE: Grainstacks (End of day; autumn),” and “LENDER: The Art Institute of Chicago.”

Fig. 28.56


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: The Art Institute of Chicago / “Claude Monet: 1840–1926” / July 14, 1995 – November 26, 1995 / Catalog: 98 / Wheatstacks / Deux Meules, déclin du jour, Automne / The Art Institute of Chicago, Mr. and Mrs. Lewis / Larned Coburn Memorial Collection (1933.444) (fig. 28.57)
292

Rectangular label with black text on a pale gray background. From top to bottom, the text reads: “The Art Institute of Chicago,” “Claude Monet: 1840–1926,” and “July 14, 1995 – November 26, 1995”; then “Catalog: 98,” followed by the titles “Wheatstacks” and “Deux Meules, déclin du jour, Automne.” The bottom lines state: “The Art Institute of Chicago, Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Larned Coburn Memorial Collection (1933.444).”

Fig. 28.57


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with typewritten and handwritten script
Content: EXHIBITION: / In Monet’s Light: Theodore Robinson / at Giverny / DATES: BMA 10/17/04–1/9/05; Phoenix 2/4-5/8/05; / Wadsworth 6/4-9/4/05 / ARTIST: CLAUDE MONET / TITLE: Two Grainstacks at the End of the Day, / Autumn / LENDER: Art Institute of Chicago / LOAN NO.: R.15938.2 / ART MUSEUM DRIVE BALTIMORE, MD 21218-3898 USA / [Logo:] THE BALTIMORE MUSEUM OF ART B M A (fig. 28.58)
293

Rectangular white label on a light gray surface with black printed text and a small black square logo at the lower right. From top to bottom, lines read: “Exhibition: In Monet’s Light: Theodore Robinson at Giverny”; “Dates: BMA 10/17/04–1/9/05; Phoenix 2/4–5/8/05; Wadsworth 6/4–9/4/05”; “Artist: CLAUDE MONET”; “Title: Two Grainstacks at the End of the Day, Autumn”; “Lender: Art Institute of Chicago.” Near the lower left it says “Loan No.:” followed by “R.15938.2” handwritten in blue, and along the bottom edge is the address “Art Museum Drive Baltimore, MD 21218-3898 USA”; the logo reads “The Baltimore Museum of Art BMA” in yellow text.

Fig. 28.58


Number
Location: backing board
Method: handwritten script
Content: 5 (fig. 28.59)
294

Centered on a light beige background, a large red number 5 is drawn with thick, slightly uneven strokes. From top to bottom and left to right, a short horizontal line extends to the right, a vertical line runs down on the left, a small horizontal line extends right at mid-height, and a broad curve forms the bottom loop. The number takes up most of the space with clear margins on all sides.

Fig. 28.59


Label
Location: backing board
Method: handwritten script on printed label
Content: Panel Insert / Installation Date / INSERT BENEATH THIS BOARD (fig. 28.60)
295

At the top, a white rectangular label with rounded corners sits on a light beige surface. Bold black text reads “Panel Insert,” with smaller black text below reading “Installation Date.” Along the bottom of the label, a bordered box contains gray pencil handwriting that is partially legible, including the words “Insert” and “this board,” with other words unclear.

Fig. 28.60


Label
Location: backing board
Method: handwritten script on printed label
Content: Panel Insert / Installation Date / 2-22-08 (fig. 28.61)
296

Top to bottom: a rectangular white label with bold black text reading “Panel Insert.” Below it, smaller black text reads “Installation Date,” followed by a thin black-outlined box across the lower portion. Inside the box, gray handwriting reads “2-22-08.” The surrounding area is off-white.

Fig. 28.61


Label
Location: panel insert
Method: handwritten script on printed label
Content: Panel Insert / Installation Date / 2-22-08 (fig. 28.62)
297

Top line shows bold black text “Panel Insert” on a white background. Below it, smaller black text reads “Installation Date.” At the bottom, a rectangular box contains a gray pencil entry that reads “2 - 22 - 08.”

Fig. 28.62


Examination and Analysis Techniques

X-radiography

Westinghouse X-ray unit, scanned on Epson Expressions 10000XL flatbed scanner. Scans were digitally composited by Robert G. Erdmann, University of Arizona.298

Infrared Reflectography

Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-Nite 1000B/2 mm filter (1.0–1.1 µm); Inframetrics Infracam with 1.5–1.73 µm filter.299

Transmitted Infrared

Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-Nite 1000B/2 mm filter (1.0–1.1 µm).300

Visible Light

Natural-light, raking-light, and transmitted-light overalls and macrophotography: Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-NiteCC1 filter.301

Ultraviolet

Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-NiteCC1 filter and Kodak Wratten 2E filter.302

High-Resolution Visible Light (and Ultraviolet)

Sinar P3 camera with Sinarback eVolution 75 H (B+W 486 UV/IR cut MRC filter, X-NiteCC1 filter, and Kodak Wratten 2E filter).303

Microscopy and Photomicrographs

Sample and cross-sectional analysis using a Zeiss Axioplan 2 research microscope equipped with reflected light/UV fluorescence and a Zeiss AxioCam MRc5 digital camera. Types of illumination used: darkfield, differential interference contrast (DIC), and UV. In situ photomicrographs with a Wild Heerbrugg M7A StereoZoom microscope fitted with an Olympus DP71 microscope digital camera.304

X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy (XRF)

Several spots on the painting were analyzed in situ with a Bruker/Keymaster TRACeR III-V with rhodium tube.305

Polarized Light Microscopy (PLM)

Zeiss Universal research microscope.306

Scanning Electron Microscopy/Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (SEM/EDX)

Cross sections analyzed after carbon coating with a Hitachi S-3400N-II VP-SEM with an Oxford EDS and a Hitachi solid-state BSE detector. Analysis was performed at the Northwestern University Atomic and Nanoscale Characterization Experimental Center (NUANCE), Electron Probe Instrumentation Center (EPIC) facility.307

Automated Thread Counting

Thread count and weave information were determined by Thread Count Automation Project software.[153]308

Image Registration Software

Overlay images registered using a novel image-based algorithm developed by Damon M. Conover (GW), John K. Delaney (GW, NGA), and Murray H. Loew (GW) of the George Washington University’s School of Engineering and Applied Science and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.[154]309

Image Inventory

The image inventory compiles records of all known images of the artwork on file in the Conservation Department, the Imaging Department, and the Department of Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture at the Art Institute of Chicago (fig. 28.63).
310

Fig. 28.63
Location/Negative # Format Purpose Date Lighting, Notes
S1833     Unknown  
M7965     Unknown  
C39837 8 × 10 color negative Posttreatment Unknown  
E28323     Unknown Normal, detail
C29182     1964?  
C39799 8 × 10 B&W negative Posttreatment 1974 Normal, overall
Conservation 8 × 10 B&W negative Pretreatment June 17, 1974 Normal, overall
Conservation 8 × 10 B&W negative Pretreatment June 17, 1974 Normal, verso
Conservation 4 × 5 B&W negative Pretreatment June 17, 1974 Infrared, overall
Conservation 8 × 10 B&W negative Pretreatment June 17, 1974 Ultraviolet, overall
E9275     Feb. 26, 1986  
E17709   Pretreatment 1989? Normal, detail
E17710   Pretreatment 1989? Normal, detail
E17843   Pretreatment 1989? Normal, overall
E28285     Aug. 23, 1993 Normal, overall
132153 Digital Loan exam Nov. 2008 Annotated image E28285
Conservation Digital OSCI May 20, 2010 Detail images and scans of verso, labels (20 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI May 21, 2010 Normal, overall
Conservation Digital OSCI May 21, 2010 Infrared (Fuji, 1000B/2mm filter), overall 
Conservation Digital OSCI May 21, 2010 Raking light, overall (3 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI May 21, 2010 Ultraviolet, overall (2 total)
Conservation Digital  OSCI May 21, 2010 Transmitted light, overall (2 total)
Conservation Digital  OSCI May 21, 2010 Transmitted infrared (Fuji, 1000B/2mm filter), overall (2 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI May 21, 2010 X-ray films scanned/digitally composited, overall
Conservation Digital OSCI May 24, 2010 Photomicrographs of surface (8 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI Oct. 18, 2010 Macro details (16 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI Oct. 21, 2010 Photomicrographs of surface (11 total)
G39286 Digital OSCI Jan. 24, 2012 Normal, overall; compositeof G39325–G39348
G39287 Digital OSCI Jan. 24, 2012 Ultraviolet, overall
G39288 Digital OSCI Jan. 26, 2012 Normal, frame only
G39325–G39348 Digital OSCI Jan. 26, 2012 Sections (24 total)

Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect), 1890/91 (Cat. 29)

Technical Summary

Claude Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) was painted on a pre-primed, no. 40 seascape (marine) standard-size linen canvas. The ground consists of a single, off-white layer. A stamp from the color merchant Troisgros Frères was documented on the back of the original stretcher. A warp-thread match was detected with seven other Monet paintings from the Art Institute’s collection: The Petite Creuse River (cat. 25 [W1231], inv. 1922.432), Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (cat. 27 [W1269], inv. 1985.1103), Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (cat. 28 [W1270], inv.), Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (cat. 32 [W1284], inv. 1983.166), Sandvika, Norway (cat. 34 [W1397], inv. 1961.790), Branch of the Seine near Giverny (Mist) (cat. 36 [W1475], inv. 1933.1156), and Water Lily Pond (cat. 37 [W1628], inv. 1933.441), suggesting that the fabric for these paintings came from the same bolt of material.[155] The painting is densely built up from a light-toned underpainting that laid out the main forms of the composition. In the process of painting, the artist made a significant change to the placement of the two stacks. At an earlier stage, the stacks appear to have been of a size comparable to those depicted in the final painting but were placed much further apart, closer to the left and right edges of the canvas. The horizon line also appears to have been painted in a significantly lower position in the earlier image. Some of the brushwork related to the earlier painting remains visible on the surface. The date, 91, appears to have been applied later and in a different color from the signature, after some pink brushstrokes added to the bottom right corner covered the original date.311

Multilayer Interactive Image Viewer

The multilayer interactive image viewer is designed to facilitate the viewer’s exploration and comparison of the technical images (fig. 29.1).[156]
312

At the top, a warm orange and pink sky transitions into a hazy blue band along the distant horizon. Below, a snow-covered field in pale blues and purples fills the foreground. Right of center sits a large conical haystack with blue-violet shadows, and to its left, a smaller haystack appears farther back; both cast darker blue shadows across the snow.
Natural Light
Top section shows a wide band of light gray with short, horizontal streaks. Across the middle, three rounded, mound-like forms appear in darker gray; the largest sits in the center, with smaller ones to its left and right. The lower area is filled with dense, swirling gray and white strokes that create a textured surface. The whole scene is in shades of black, gray, and white, framed by a thin border marked with small, evenly spaced ticks along the edges.
X-Ray
At the top, a dark sky shifts from deep purple and navy to a band of reddish-brown near the horizon. Below the horizon, a flat field in muted blues and purples stretches across the scene. In the foreground, a large cone-shaped haystack sits slightly right of center, with a smaller haystack to its left in the midground; both have darker blue areas at their bases. No people or buildings are visible.
Infrared (1.5–1.7 µm)
At the top, a dark sky shifts from deep purple and navy to a band of reddish-brown near the horizon. Below the horizon, a flat field in muted blues and purples stretches across the scene. In the foreground, a large cone-shaped haystack sits slightly right of center, with a smaller haystack to its left in the midground; both have darker blue areas at their bases. No people or buildings are visible.
Raking Light
At the top, a wide band of orange and brown sky stretches across the width, meeting a dark horizon. Below, a broad field in deep blue and purple fills the middle and lower areas, speckled with small red-orange highlights. Near the center foreground, a large cone-shaped stack in dark blue with rusty red edges dominates, while a smaller, similar stack sits to its left and slightly farther back. The ground around them is uneven and darker near the bases of the stacks.
Transmitted Light
A dark border frames a textured grayscale scene. From top to bottom, the upper area shows many horizontal dark gray streaks across a lighter gray field. In the middle to lower area, three rounded, mound-like forms are visible, with the largest in the center and smaller ones to the left and right; these forms are medium to dark gray with lighter streaks, set against a light to medium gray background. Brightest spots appear near the left-center and along the right edge, while the corners remain nearly black.
Transmitted Infrared (1.0–1.1 µm)
Top third shows a band of warm orange, brown, and black sky above a cool blue horizon. Below, a wide field in deep blue and purple fills most of the scene, with patches and streaks of pink. Near the lower center-right sits a large cone-shaped haystack, dark blue with touches of green and red; a smaller, similar stack is to its left and slightly behind. The larger stack is about twice the width of the smaller, and both sit on the blue ground with darker shadows extending toward the lower left.
Ultraviolet
Alt text for the image
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
Transmitted Infrared
Alt text for the image
X-Ray

Fig. 29.1

Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91). The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431. Interactive image.

Signature

Signed and dated: Claude Monet 91 (lower right, name in reddish-brown paint, date in greenish-brown paint)[157] (fig. 29.2, fig. 29.3, fig. 29.4). The signature is executed in a reddish-brown paint and was applied when the underlying paint was dry. The date, on the other hand, consists of a dull, greenish-brown paint mixture and appears to have been added later, wet-in-wet, over a layer of pale-pink paint that was applied just to the corner area and that appears to cover an earlier date similar in color to the signature (fig. 29.5).[158]
313

Upper area is mostly lavender and light pink with scattered patches of light blue. Bottom third features brown cursive writing that reads “Claude Monet 91,” stretching from left to right on the same lavender background, with a faint band of light blue and pink along the lower edge. A thin vertical strip of muted green runs along the right border.

Fig. 29.2


Detail of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing the signature. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

At the top, a black scale bar labeled “5.0 mm” appears over a light purple background. Center-right, two tall, irregular brown shapes rise vertically and taper near the top, with broken, patchy edges; left side holds a smaller brown blotch and a few thin brown streaks near the lower edge. The background is lilac to lavender with visible ridges and grooves running diagonally across the surface.
Monet 22.431 MIC 13
A large black area fills the top and middle of the frame. Along the bottom edge, a narrow horizontal band of blended purple, pink, and blue runs left to right, with a thin light blue strip at the very bottom. Within this band, small dark brown‑green vertical marks form a row; two near the center are enclosed by a thin black rectangle, and two larger dark shapes sit at the far right.
Detail Location

Fig. 29.3

Photomicrograph of the date of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing wet-over-dry paint application. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431. 

Across the top, a textured surface in purple tones with small light patches runs left to right. In the left-center, a dark brown looped mark with a short vertical tail sits beside a second, narrower dark vertical mark to its right; both stand out against the purple background. Fine scratches and tiny pits are scattered throughout. Bottom left shows a black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm.
Monet 22.431 MIC 3
A solid black background occupies nearly the entire frame. At the bottom right, a small wide rectangle shows purple, blue, and pink tones with brown cursive text that reads “Claude Monet,” and a thin light strip runs along its lower edge. Near the right side of this rectangle, a small black-outlined square icon is visible.
Detail Location

Fig. 29.4

Photomicrograph of the date of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing traces of an earlier date underneath the purple paint layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Top area shows a light purple field with scattered pink patches. From left to right across the middle, several short brown marks lead to a larger brown, slightly diagonal mark; near the right edge, a dark green-black curved line sits beside a darker vertical line. Along the bottom, the purple continues with a soft patch of light blue near the left and more pink near the center; the marks appear thick and prominent against the background.

Fig. 29.5


Detail of the signature of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing the repainted date. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Structure and Technique

Support

Canvas
Flax (commonly known as linen).[159]314

Standard format
The original dimensions were approximately 65 × 100 cm, which corresponds to a no. 40 seascape (marine) standard-size stretcher.[160]315

Weave
Plain weave. Average thread count (standard deviation): 23.3V (0.5) × 22.2H (0.7) threads/cm. The vertical threads were determined to correspond to the warp and the horizontal threads to the weft.[161] A warp-thread match was determined with seven other Monet paintings in the Art Institute’s collection: The Petite Creuse River (cat. 25 [W1231], inv. 1922.432), Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (cat. 27 [W1269], inv. 1985.1103), Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (cat. 28 [W1270], inv. 1933.444), Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (cat. 32 [W1284], inv. 1983.166), Sandvika, Norway (cat. 34 [W1397], inv. 1961.790), Branch of the Seine near Giverny (Mist) (cat. 36 [W1475], inv. 1933.1156), and Water Lily Pond (cat. 37 [W1628], inv. 1933.441).[162]316

Canvas characteristics
There is mild cusping along the top and bottom edges, slightly more pronounced cusping on the left edge, and stronger and more irregular cusping along the right edge.317

Stretching
Current stretching: Dates to the 1992 treatment (see Conservation History); copper tacks spaced approximately 2–5 cm apart. The painting appears to have been mounted on the stretcher slightly askew. Additional holes on all sides probably relate to the aluminum strip molding applied in 1959 (see Conservation History).318

Original stretching: Tack holes, spaced approximately 6–8 cm apart, correspond to cusping in the canvas. A second series of tack holes is spaced more irregularly, approximately 5–10 cm apart, and does not align with the cusping pattern.[163]319

Stretcher/strainer
Current stretcher: Five-membered wood stretcher with vertical crossbar and keyable mortise and tenon joints, dating to the 1992 treatment (see Conservation History). Depth: 3 cm.320

Original stretcher: Discarded. The pre-1968-treatment stretcher may have been the original stretcher.[164] A diagram in the 1959 examination report indicates that the stretcher consisted of five members including a vertical crossbar, with keyable, butt-ended joints.[165] Depth: Based on the presence of a crease in the tacking margin, presumably where excess fabric was folded over the back edge of the original stretcher, the depth was approximately 1.5 cm.321

Manufacturer’s/supplier’s marks
The 1959 examination report records that there was a stamp on the back of the pre-1968-treatment stretcher (discarded): TROT [sic] . . . (?)OS FRÈRES / 35 Rue Victor Massé / Panneaux etc (fig. 29.6).[166]
322

Light gray background with faint gray handwriting; on the left margin is a short word that appears to read “Hamp:”. Toward the center-right, a small rectangular outline encloses three lines of text. Top line: “TROT(?)OS FRÈRES” (middle characters unclear); middle line: “35 Rue Victor Massé”; bottom line: “Panneaux etc”. All text is small and gray on a pale background.

Fig. 29.6


Transcription of a supplier’s stamp from the back of the original canvas of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91). The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Preparatory Layers

Sizing
In UV light, evidence of a light blue fluorescence between the canvas and the ground suggests the presence of an organic layer, possibly glue sizing (fig. 29.7).[167]
323

Top section is a smooth dark blue field with a 50 µm scale bar at the upper left. Near the upper center is a white, crescent-shaped form, with gray, bubble-like textures on both its left and right sides; below it stretches a horizontal band of layered light to dark gray. The lower edge shifts to bright blue with scattered tiny black specks. Sizes range from small dot-like specks to the medium white crescent that spans roughly a third of the width.
Monet 22.431 x1384_20x_UV_c
Mostly black space with a small rectangular scene in the bottom-left. The scene shows a snowy field with two conical haystacks: a larger one in the foreground near center-left and a smaller one behind it to the left. A low horizon runs across the middle, with an orange and yellow sky fading to purple and blue, while the ground is light blue and pink. No people or animals are visible.
Sample Location

Fig. 29.7

Photomicrograph of a cross section of the ground and canvas layers of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing a light-blue fluorescing layer underneath the off-white ground layer. Original magnification: 200×. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Ground application/texture
The ground layer extends to the edges of all four tacking margins, indicating that the canvas was cut from a larger piece of primed fabric, which was probably commercially prepared. The ground consists of a single layer and ranges from approximately 15 to 80 µm in thickness (fig. 29.8).
324

Top area is dark gray to black, with a 50 µm scale bar in the upper-right. Across the center, a thick horizontal white strip with uneven edges runs left to right, spanning most of the width and measuring several times the 50 µm bar; small bright specks appear along its surface. The lower portion is dark brown with thin pale streaks, and a small lighter patch sits directly beneath the central strip.
Monet 22.431 _x1384_20x_dkfld_f
At the top, a band of orange and yellow sky shifts to purple toward the upper left. Across the middle, a low, bluish horizon stretches from left to right. In the foreground left, a large rounded haystack sits on blue‑violet snow, with a smaller haystack slightly behind it to the left. The ground is covered in blue and purple snow with visible darker shadows around the haystacks.
Sample Location

Fig. 29.8

Photomicrograph of a cross section of the ground layer of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91). Original magnification: 100×. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Color
The ground is off-white, with some dark particles visible under magnification (fig. 29.9).
325

From top to bottom, a beige surface fills the frame, covered with small rounded bumps and many tiny brown dots or pits arranged in loose rows. On the right side, the beige area transitions to a pinkish-tan, rougher strip with cracks and scattered darker brown flecks, while the left edge shows a slightly darker beige band. Elements are very small; a scale bar at the bottom right reads 2.0 mm.
Monet 22.431 MIC 1
A large black area occupies the top and right portions of the frame. In the bottom-left quarter, a rectangular section contains light purple on the far left, shifting to blue across the center, with pink near the lower center-right and a dark gray area at the upper right of this section. A thin beige vertical strip runs along the far left edge of the colored section, and a small outlined black rectangle protrudes from the left edge near the middle.
Detail Location

Fig. 29.9

Photomicrograph of the ground layer of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91). The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Materials/composition
Analysis indicates the presence of the following components: lead white and calcium carbonate (chalk), with traces of bone black, iron oxide, alumina, silica, and various silicates.[168] Binder: Oil (estimated).326

Compositional Planning/Underdrawing/Painted Sketch

Extent/character
No underdrawing was observed with infrared reflectography (IRR) or microscopic examination.327

Paint Layer

Application/technique and artist’s revision
Most of the landscape and the left side of the sky were executed in similarly soft shades of blue and pink, sometimes mixed to form pale-purple hues. These colors appear throughout these areas, but in general, pink was used for the reflections in the snow and a slightly more intense blue to denote the shadows. The artist worked in a fairly narrow tonal range, such that the transition from foreground to middle ground to sky is almost indistinguishable and the buildings in the distance are barely discernible. The stacks come into sharper focus through the use of more intensely colored strokes of blue and reddish-brown paint. The most intense color—shades of bright yellow, orange, and salmon pink (fig. 29.10)—were reserved for the evening sky. The paint layer is fairly continuous, with very little exposed ground visible at the surface. The dense buildup of paint is evident in both the transmitted light and X-ray images (fig. 29.11). Where a few small glimpses are afforded, there appears to be a light-toned underpainting that covers most of the ground layer. This often consists of pale shades of gray (fig. 29.12) or, underneath the stacks, subdued greens and pinkish browns (fig. 29.13, fig. 29.14). The brush-marked texture of this underpainting often remains visible on the surface of the painting.
328

Top area shows warm yellow blending into orange and peach, sweeping left to right. Across the middle, a narrow horizontal band of soft blue and violet stretches from edge to edge. The lower half is filled with light blue and lavender tones, forming a broad zone beneath the central band.

Fig. 29.10


Detail of the sky in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91). The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

At the top, a band of orange and yellow sky fades into darker tones near the horizon. Across the middle and lower areas, a broad, flat expanse in deep blue and purple fills the scene. Near the center-right foreground stands a large cone-shaped mound with dark brown sides touched by red and purple; a smaller, similar mound sits to its left and slightly behind. The foreground is dark blue with scattered warm highlights.
Transmitted Light
Top section shows horizontal bands of light and medium gray. In the middle, three rounded mound-like shapes are visible, with the largest in the center foreground and smaller ones set slightly back to the left and right. The bottom area is filled with dense, swirling textures in medium-to-dark gray, creating strong contrast around the central mound.
X-Ray
Top band shows an orange and peach sky that fades to pale lavender at the horizon. Across the middle, a thin bluish ridge and a wide, snowy field stretch left to right. In the foreground, two cone-shaped stacks sit on the snow: a large one slightly right of center occupying much of the lower area, and a smaller one behind it to the left; both appear in brown and violet tones with blue-white patches, with blue and pink shadows spreading across the surrounding snow.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 29.11

Transmitted-light, X-ray, and natural-light images of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91). The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431. Interactive image.

Rough, textured surface dominated by warm orange and peach covers most of the frame. A thin gray-beige strip runs along the top and a narrow gray border lines the right edge; near the upper right, a lighter yellow-orange area slants diagonally toward the center. Small raised bumps and shallow grooves appear left of center, with faint touches of pale yellow, pink, and light green scattered across the surface.

Fig. 29.12


Detail of the sky in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing small areas of exposed pale-gray underlayer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Top area shows layered patches of medium to dark blue and purple with scattered light gray speckles. Center-left has a dense, bumpy cluster of pale gray spots and small pits, while the right side shows diagonal streaks of bright blue and brown. Bottom area is smoother with darker purple and brown, dotted with small shiny points. A black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm appears in the lower right corner.
Monet 22.431 MIC 27
Most of the frame is black, with a wide rectangular landscape placed in the bottom-left. Inside it, two rounded mountain peaks fill the lower half: a smaller peak on the far left and a larger one at center-right, colored in blues, purples, grays, and browns, beneath a pale blue and lavender sky. A small black outlined rectangle sits on the lower-left slope of the left peak. No people, buildings, or vegetation are clearly visible.
Detail Location

Fig. 29.13

Photomicrograph of the small wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing a dull-green underlayer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

From top to bottom, a rough, ridged surface shows mottled dark blue and gray areas with scattered off-white specks. Slightly right of center is an oval patch of deeper blue with fine parallel ridges running diagonally. In the bottom right corner, a black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm provides a size reference.
Monet 22.431 MIC 29
Top and right areas are plain black, while the bottom-left holds a rectangular scene. At the top of that rectangle is a pale blue and lavender sky; below it sit two rounded hills with blue, gray, and brown coloring, the larger in the center-right and the smaller to the left. The smaller hill sits slightly lower and overlaps with the larger hill. The larger hill is roughly twice the height of the smaller one, and the base shows darker blue and brown patches with no people, animals, or structures visible.
Detail Location

Fig. 29.14

Photomicrograph of the large wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing a pinkish-brown underlayer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

The brushwork is relatively uniform over the surface. Brush marks are visible, but they are low relief and smoothed out in places, with very little impasto. The paint consistency ranges from quite fluid, exhibiting a smooth, settled surface with some swirling together of unmixed colors (fig. 29.15), to stiffer, more-bodied paint that holds the ridges of the brush marks (fig. 29.16).[169] The painting combines areas of wet-in-wet mixing and wet-over-dry brushwork. In some areas, the artist used a scumbling technique in which he layered opaque, slightly more intense color on top of a lighter paint layer. This is apparent in the orange area of the sky, where deep orange-red paint was applied wet-over-dry with a small brush (2.0–3.0 mm in width), using short strokes that allow the pale orange layer underneath to show through (fig. 29.17). A similar effect was observed in the bluish-gray hill near the left edge (fig. 29.18). The light dragging of the upper paint layers here and throughout the painting emphasizes the texture of the underlying layers. This is particularly apparent in the areas of compositional changes (discussed below).
329

Top area has a purplish, ridged surface with small cracks. On the left, wavy vertical bands of light blue, white, and pale purple curve downward; the center is uneven purple with scattered small tan and yellow spots, and the right side shows smoother bluish‑violet streaks. A black horizontal scale bar labeled 5.0 mm appears in the bottom right.
Monet 22.431 MIC 31
A large black area fills the top and most of the frame. Along the bottom, two rounded mountain peaks stretch left to right; the left peak is smaller and sits farther back, while the right peak is larger and near center-right. The peaks are mottled with blue, purple, and brown, with lighter blue patches toward their upper areas. A pale sky in soft blue and pink tones sits behind them, and a small black rectangle marks a spot on the upper-right slope of the larger peak.
Detail Location

Fig. 29.15

Photomicrograph of the large wheat stack in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing fluid paint application. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Upper half shows a broad field of pale blue and lavender with soft, wavy patterns. In the center-left, medium blue and light beige patches form a loose circular shape. The right edge and lower right contain a wide band of reddish-brown with touches of orange, blending into purple tones toward the bottom left. No identifiable objects or people are visible.

Fig. 29.16


Detail of the hill in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing the brushmarked paint application. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

A close-up view shows an orange-brown surface with irregular, swirling patches of lighter tan and small off-white specks. Fine, hairline scratches curve diagonally from left to right across the center, with shallow pits and streaks visible in several areas, especially near the middle and lower right. A black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm appears in the bottom-right corner.
Monet 22.431 MIC 21
Upper portion is solid black. Along the bottom, a horizontal band shows warm colors near the top—yellow, orange, and peach—shifting to pink and then a blue-purple strip at the very bottom. A thin light gray-green line runs near the top edge of this colored band, and a small black rectangular outline sits slightly right of center within the orange‑pink area.
Detail Location

Fig. 29.17

Photomicrograph from the sky of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the paint layers. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Top section shows a bluish‑purple surface with fine ridges and shallow grooves running diagonally. Toward the center and left, there are irregular scratches and small pits, with scattered gray patches. Along the bottom edge, the texture becomes rougher with clustered pits. A black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm appears at the bottom right for size reference.
Monet 22.431 MIC 25
A large black background fills most of the frame, with a smaller vertical rectangle on the left containing areas of blue, purple, and pink. From top to bottom inside this panel: a light gray-blue top band, a middle area of pale blues and purples, and a darker rounded mound at the lower right edge with deep blue and green. A thin black square outline appears near the upper left of the colored panel.
Detail Location

Fig. 29.18

Photomicrograph of the sky in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the paint layers. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Technical examination has revealed a major compositional change in the placement of the two stacks. As is evident in both the X-ray and transmitted-infrared images, earlier in the painting process the stacks were positioned much farther apart (fig. 29.19). Although the sizes of both the large and the small stack seem comparable to those in the final painting, their outer edges were much closer to the left and right sides of the canvas, which would have left quite a large empty space in the middle of the composition.[170] Brushstrokes from the earlier stacks, particularly the thicker strokes that delineate the edges, remain visible on the surface, especially when the painting is viewed in raking light (fig. 29.20). It is difficult to say how far these stacks were developed or whether they were painted in a different palette, since the paint applied on top is mostly continuous. In a few small areas of the large painted-out stack, however, some green paint was observed below the surface (fig. 29.21). A similar green area was detected below the pink and blue paint of the landscape at the left edge of the painting (fig. 29.22), perhaps providing evidence that the artist started the painting using a different color scheme. The artist may also have adjusted the position of the horizon line. There are some strong, roughly horizontal, curving brushstrokes above and below the current horizon, on the left and right sides of the painting. These are more clearly visible in the X-ray, which shows similar brushstrokes continuing throughout the sky. Based on this evidence, it seems that the horizon line may have originally been significantly lower, possibly with the peak of the large painted-out stack rising slightly above it (fig. 29.23).
330

Top area shows a pale gray sky with streaks and patches of brighter white. Across the middle are three large rounded mounds; the largest sits slightly left of center with a lighter tip, flanked by two smaller mounds to the left and right, all in medium to dark grays. Bottom area is a darker gray ground with swirling, uneven textures that extend across the scene.
X-Ray
At the top, a light gray band is marked with many short, dark horizontal strokes. In the center, a large dark rounded shape sits slightly above the middle, with two smaller rounded shapes to its left and right, all streaked with lighter gray. The bottom zone is darker gray with dense, rough shading, and the edges and corners fade to black.
Transmitted Infrared (1.0–1.1 µm)
At the top, an orange and pink sky stretches across the width, fading to purple at a low horizon. In the foreground, two conical mounds rest on a pale blue and violet ground; the larger mound is near the center-right front, and a smaller one sits to its left and further back. The mounds appear brown with blue-violet patches, and the open ground shows broad areas of blue, violet, and light pink.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Transmitted-IR
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 29.19

X-ray, transmitted infrared (Fuji, 1.0–1.1 µm), and natural-light images of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing changes made to the composition. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431. Interactive image.

Top area shows a dark horizon under a reddish-orange sky that shifts to deep purple. Center-right foreground features a large conical mound in dark brown with bluish highlights; a smaller, similar mound sits to the left in the midground. The ground is flat and mostly blue-purple with darker patches that cluster around the bases of the mounds. No people, animals, or buildings are visible.
Raking Light
Top band shows a warm orange and pink sky fading to pale purple at the horizon. The middle ground is a low, hazy line of land in soft blue and lavender. In the foreground, two conical stacks rest on snow: a large one right of center and a smaller one to its left and farther back, with blue and purple shadows and muted brown on the stacks.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 29.20

Raking-light and natural-light images of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing brushstrokes from the earlier composition. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431. Interactive image.

From top left to bottom right, a mottled field of blue‑purple fills most of the view, with tan‑beige speckles scattered across it and a reddish‑orange patch near the top left edge. Near the center, thin green streaks and small green patches run diagonally from upper left toward lower right. At the bottom right corner, a black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm is visible.
Monet 22.431 MIC 32
Mostly black frame with a rectangular color area in the lower-left quadrant. Inside that area, blended patches of blue, purple, and pink fill the space, with darker blue along the left edge and lighter lavender and gray-blue toward the top; a small black-outlined square sits slightly right of center. The colored section takes up about a quarter of the frame, while the black space covers the top and right portions.
Detail Location

Fig. 29.21

Photomicrograph of the buildings in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing green paint from the earlier composition. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Top area features a broad field of pale purple with faint blue and pink streaks, crossed by shallow diagonal ridges. Along the far left edge, a narrow vertical strip of yellow-beige is covered with small, evenly spaced dots; next to it sits a mottled band of gray‑lavender with tiny green specks. Bottom left to center shows patches of dusty pink and peach blending into the purple, with curved ridges continuing across the middle and right side.

Fig. 29.22


Detail of the left edge of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing a dull-green underlayer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Across the top, a wide band of light gray with scattered short white streaks runs left to right. In the middle, three rounded mounds are visible: a large dark gray mound at the center with a lighter tip, flanked by smaller mounds on the left and right, all surrounded by swirling mid-gray marks. The bottom area is filled with dense, wavy gray textures. Everything is in shades of black, gray, and white, framed by a thin border with small white tick marks along the edges.
X-Ray
At the top, a band of bright orange and yellow sky transitions to pale purple along a distant horizon. Below, a broad field in lavender, light blue, and soft pink fills the area. Two conical mounds sit on this field—a large one near the center-right foreground and a smaller one to its left and slightly behind—colored brown with blue and purple patches, with darker blue areas around their bases.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 29.23

X-ray and natural-light images of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing horizontal brushstrokes from the sky continuing below the horizon line. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431. Interactive image.

A band of disturbed paint—caused by something having been pressed onto and then pulled away from the paint surface when it was still wet, drawing up low peaks—occurred along the bottom edge. The band is approximately 45 cm long and is positioned roughly in the middle of the canvas (29 cm from the left edge and 27 cm from the right edge) (fig. 29.24). This impression in the wet paint may have been caused by an easel cleat or transporting device. Subsequent brushstrokes were applied on top when the peaks of paint were dry, indicating that the disturbance to the wet paint occurred at some point during the execution of the work. A few inclusions, possibly of plant matter, were observed embedded in the paint layer, near the bottom-right corner (fig. 29.25).[171]
331

Close-up of a textured surface in shades of blue and purple. From the top to the middle, raised ridges and lumps run diagonally with lighter blue streaks; the center shows irregular cracks and a few fine dark fibers. The bottom band shifts to mottled purple and brown with tiny pits and a soft horizontal boundary. A scale bar at the lower right reads 5.0 mm, indicating the details are very small.
Monet 22.431 MIC 19
Left side shows an area filled with color, while the right side is a solid black region. From top left to upper middle on the left, a large brown‑gray area is bordered by blue and purple patches, with more blue and violet toward the upper right. Moving downward, the colors transition into light blue and pink across the lower left and center, ending at a narrow beige strip along the bottom edge; a small black‑outlined square sits just above this strip slightly left of center.
Detail Location

Fig. 29.24

Photomicrograph of the bottom edge of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing where something was pressed against the wet paint. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

At the top, a thin black scale bar labeled 2.0 mm spans part of the width. Across the center from left to right, a narrow tan, worm‑like strip lies in a shallow groove on a textured purple surface. The strip tapers to a point on the right, shows faint banding, and is several times longer than the 2.0 mm bar. Small bumps and pits are scattered across the purple background, with one small bump attached to the strip near its right half.
Monet 22.431 MIC 17
A large black field fills most of the frame from top to lower areas. In the lower right, a wide, short rectangle shows blended lavender, blue, and pink tones with a line of dark brown cursive marks near the lower center and right side. At the rectangle’s bottom-right corner, a small square inset presents a close-up of the same corner in pale pink and purple hues.
Detail Location

Fig. 29.25

Photomicrograph of the lower right corner of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) showing an inclusion in the paint layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Painting tools
Brushes including 0.3, 1.0, and 1.5 cm width, flat ferrule (based on width and shape of brushstrokes). There are several brush hairs embedded in the paint surface.332

Palette
Analysis indicates the presence of the following pigments: lead white, cadmium yellow, chrome yellow, vermilion, red lake, viridian, cobalt blue, and ultramarine blue.[172] UV fluorescence suggests the use of red lake throughout the landscape.[173]333

Binding media
Oil (estimated).[174]334

Surface Finish

Varnish layer/media
The painting was cleaned in 1992 and left unvarnished. It has a subtly variable surface—matte in some areas, low sheen in others—depending on the qualities of the paint. It is noted in the conservation file that the painting was cleaned and varnished in 1922.[175] Its surface finish prior to this treatment was not documented (see Conservation History).335

Conservation History

The painting was cleaned and varnished in 1922.[176]336

In 1954 the stretcher was keyed out to ameliorate slackening of the canvas.[177]337

Around 1959 the painting was surface cleaned with wax emulsions and backed with resin-coated paper board, and aluminum strip molding was attached along the edges.[178]338

In 1968 a “very heavy, yellowed” varnish was removed. The canvas was wax-resin lined and mounted on a new ICA spring stretcher. A layer of polyvinyl acetate (PVA) AYAA was applied. Minor inpainting was carried out. A layer of methacrylate resin L-46 was applied, followed by a final layer of AYAA.[179]339

In 1992 the wax-resin lining was removed. The canvas was edge lined and mounted on a new keyable wood stretcher with a loose lining. The synthetic varnish layers were removed, and the painting was left unvarnished.[180]340

Condition Summary

The painting is in good condition. The canvas is edge lined and loose lined with a panel insert. There are no planar deformations. Moderate cracking, abrasion, and small losses are present in the paint and ground layers around all of the edges, with some short splits in the canvas at the foldovers and holes at the corners. The paint layer is in excellent condition, with only a few tiny flake losses. There is minimal retouching, mostly at the top, left, and right edges. There is an overall network of fine cracks. Cracking is more extensive in the sky, but is visible mostly only under magnification. Stretcher-bar cracks are visible in the area of the original vertical crossbar. A few anomalous brown and gray paint strokes near the bottom left corner have the appearance of smudges or accretions but are probably original to the painting, since they appear to be wet-in-wet with the surrounding paint. There is some flattening of the paint and embedded wood fibers and debris in the frame rebate area, which appears to be due to framing when the paint was still soft. Several brush hairs are embedded in the paint surface. There are some light scratches and gouges in the blue paint at the bottom left corner and also to the right of the large stack, which occurred when the paint was still soft. The painting is currently unvarnished and has a natural matte finish with slight variations in gloss depending on the qualities of the paint. Some yellowed, natural-resin varnish residues and starch-paste residues from previous treatments are visible microscopically in the recesses of the paint texture. In places, these residues scatter the light and impart a whitish, milky appearance at certain angles. There are traces of gold paint in the frame rebate area.

Kimberley Muir341

Frame

Current frame (installed in 1995): The frame is not original to the painting. It is a reproduction of a Louis XIII convex frame with carved acanthus leaves divided by an undulating ribbon, inner guilloche ornament bordered by hollows, and leaf-tip sight edge (Paul Mitchell Ltd., London 1995). The frame is water gilded over red bole on gesso. The hollows are burnished while the ornament is selectively burnished. The gilding is toned with thin washes of oil paint and glue size. The carved jelutong-wood molding is mitered and joined with dovetail splines. The molding, from perimeter to interior, is quirked ogee cyma recta; convex face with carved acanthus leaves divided by an undulating ribbon; fillet with rocked recutting; hollow; guilloche bordered by rocked recutting; hollow; torus with carved leaf tips; and cove sight (fig. 29.26).[181]
342

At the top, an orange and pink sky fades into a band of bluish-purple along the distant horizon. Below, a snowy field fills the scene in blue and lavender tones. In the foreground, two cone-shaped hay mounds sit in the snow, a large one near the center-right and a smaller one slightly behind it to the left, both edged with blue and brown shadows.

Fig. 29.26


Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) in its current frame. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.431.

Previous frame (a note on a 1969 loan request states the work “was re-framed in 1968 August”; removed 1995): The work was previously housed in an American mid-twentieth-century reproduction of a Louis XVI, gilt, architrave frame with ribbon-and-reel and bead-and-bobbin ornament (APF Inc., New York) (fig. 29.27, fig. 29.28).[182]
343

On an olive-green wall, four framed landscape scenes are arranged left to right. Far left is a medium-size scene showing a large brown mound in a light field with blue‑gray water and cliffs behind. In the center, two smaller works are stacked: the upper shows a tan‑green field with scattered trees and one very tall thin tree against a pale blue sky; the lower shows a brown and gray rocky slope dropping to a narrow stream with green trees. Far right, the largest scene shows two rounded mounds in lavender‑blue surroundings beneath an orange‑pink sky; all frames are gold-toned.

Fig. 29.27


Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) in a previous frame, installed in Paintings by Monet, Art Institute of Chicago, Mar. 15–May 11, 1975. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

At the top, a plain light wall has faint uppercase lettering near the ceiling. Across the middle, five medium-sized rectangular framed paintings hang in a row; from left to right, each shows a mound-like form in a field in gray tones, with several adults standing and viewing them, a simple bench in front, and a low rope barrier behind the bench. In the foreground, an adult with short hair in a dark suit and tie stands at the left, and an older person with short light hair in a light jacket and scarf stands at the right; the floor is dark patterned wood with doorways at both far sides.

Fig. 27.28


Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) in a previous frame, gallery installation. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

Kirk Vuillemot
344

Sold by the artist to Durand-Ruel, Paris, July 20, 1891, for 3,200 francs.[183]345

Sold by Durand-Ruel, Paris, to Durand-Ruel, New York, Oct. 30, 1891.[184]346

Sold by Durand-Ruel, New York, to Potter Palmer, Chicago, Feb. 29, 1892, for $13,000.[185]347

By descent from Potter Palmer (died 1902), Chicago, to the Palmer family.[186]348

Given by the Palmer family to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.
349

Paris, Galeries Durand-Ruel, Exposition d’oeuvres récentes de Claude Monet, May 1891, cat. 13, as Meules. (Coucher du soleil; effet de neige.).[187]350

Boston, Copley Society, Loan Collection of Paintings by Claude Monet and Eleven Sculptures by Auguste Rodin, Mar. 1905, cat. 84, as Meules. Effet de Neige, Soleil Couchant. 1891. Lent by Mrs. Potter Palmer.[188]351

Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings from the Collection of Mrs. Potter Palmer, May 10–Nov., 1910, cat. 36, as Haystacks in winter.[189]352

Poughkeepsie (N.Y.), Vassar College, Art Department Picture of the Month, series 1 (circuit exhibition, organized by the American Federation of Arts), Nov. 1954;[190] possibly La Jolla (Calif.) Art Center, Dec. 1954;[191] Charleston, S.C., Gibbes Art Gallery, Jan. 1955;[192] Columbus (Ga.) Museum of Arts and Crafts, Feb. 1955;[193] possibly Seattle, Charles and Emma Frye Free Public Art Museum, Mar. 1955;[194] Louisville, Ky., J. B. Speed Art Museum, Apr. 1955;[195] Berea (Ky.), Berea College of Art Department, May 1955.[196]353

Park Forest (Ill.) Art Center, Mar. 25–Apr. 22, 1956, no cat.[197]354

Art Institute of Chicago, The Paintings of Claude Monet, Apr. 1–June 15, 1957, no cat. no.[198]355

New York, Museum of Modern Art, Claude Monet: Seasons and Moments, Mar. 9–May 15, 1960, cat. 52; Los Angeles County Museum, June 14–Aug. 7, 1960.356

Buffalo. N.Y., Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Color and Field, 1890–1970, Sept. 15–Nov. 1, 1970, cat. 14 (ill.); Dayton (Ohio) Art Institute, Nov. 20, 1970–Jan. 10, 1971; Cleveland Museum of Art, Feb. 4–March 28, 1971.357

Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings by Monet, Mar. 15–May 11, 1975, cat. 87 (ill.) (fig. 29.29).[199] 
358

On an olive-brown gallery wall, four framed landscape scenes are arranged left to right, with two stacked vertically in the middle. Left: a medium scene shows a single haystack in a light field with distant bluffs under a pale sky. Center top shows a meadow with green trees and a tall slender tree in front of blue‑gray hills; center bottom shows a rocky hillside with a winding channel and patches of greenery. Right: the largest scene shows two haystacks in an open field beneath a wide band of orange light and a hazy sky; the outer frames are ornate gold and the two center frames are simpler light wood.

Fig. 29.29


Installation of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) in Paintings by Monet, Art Institute of Chicago, Mar. 15–May 11, 1975. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Monet’s Years at Giverny: Beyond Impressionism, Apr. 19–July 9, 1978, cat. 13 (ill.); Saint Louis Art Museum, Aug. 1–Oct. 8, 1978.359

Los Angeles County Museum of Art, A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, June 28–Sept. 16, 1984, cat. 112 (ill.); Art Institute of Chicago, Oct. 23, 1984–Jan. 6, 1985; Paris, Galeries Nationales d’Exposition du Grand Palais, as L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, Feb. 4–Apr. 22, 1985.[200]360

Art Institute of Chicago, The Art of the Edge: European Frames, 1300–1900, Oct. 17–Dec. 14, 1986, not in cat.[201]361

Boston, Museum of Fine Arts, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, Feb. 7–Apr. 29, 1990, cat. 22 (ill.); Art Institute of Chicago, May 19–Aug. 12, 1990; London, Royal Academy of Arts, Sept. 7–Dec. 9, 1990.362

Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago’s Dream, a World’s Treasure: The Art Institute of Chicago, 1893–1993, Nov. 1, 1993–Jan. 9, 1994, no cat. no. (ill.).[202]363

Art Institute of Chicago, Claude Monet, 1840–1926, July 22–Nov. 26, 1995, cat. 96 (ill.). (fig. 29.30)
364

Left to right: a partial view of a gold-framed landscape on the far left, then two wall panels with text and a small photo, followed by two medium-sized gold-framed landscapes spaced across the wood-paneled wall. The center and right paintings show fields with conical haystacks in pink, purple, and blue tones; the leftmost frame is only partly visible. Foreground to background: a light brown herringbone wood floor leads to a low silver post-and-rope barrier in front of the dark brown walls with a black band along the bottom. The room is dim, with lighting focused on the artworks and labels.

Fig. 29.30


Installation of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (1890/91) in Claude Monet, 1840–1926, Art Institute of Chicago, July 22–Nov. 26, 1995. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

Washington, D.C., Phillips Collection, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de Neige, Sept. 19, 1998–Jan. 3, 1999, cat. 26 (ill.); San Francisco, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco at the Center for the Arts at Yerba Buena Gardens, Jan. 30–May 2, 1999 (Washington only).365

Hamburg, Hamburger Kunsthalle, Monets Vermächtnis: Serie—Ordnung und Obsession, Sept. 28, 2001–Jan. 6, 2002, no cat. no. (ill.).[203]366

Baltimore, Walters Art Museum, Déjà Vu? Revealing Repetition in French Masterpieces, Oct. 7, 2007–Jan. 1, 2008, cat. 58 (ill.); Phoenix Art Museum, Jan. 20–May 4, 2008.[204]367

Fort Worth, Tex., Kimbell Museum of Art, The Impressionists: Master Paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago, June 29–Nov. 2, 2008, cat. 77 (ill.).
368

Galeries Durand-Ruel, Paris, Exposition Claude Monet, exh. cat. (Galeries Durand-Ruel, 1891), p. 16, cat. 13.369

“Claude Monet Exhibit Opens,” Boston Post, Mar. 15, 1905.370

Copley Society, Loan Collection of Paintings by Claude Monet and Eleven Sculptures by August Rodin, exh. cat. (Copley Society, 1905), p. 26, cat 84.371

Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings from the Collection of Mrs. Potter Palmer, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago, 1910), cat. 36.372

Art Institute of Chicago, “Accessions and Loans,” Bulletin of the Art Institute of Chicago 16, 3 (May, 1922), p. 47.373

M.C., “Monets in the Art Institute,” Bulletin of the Art Institute of Chicago 19, 2 (Feb. 1925), p. 20.374

Art Institute of Chicago, A Guide to the Paintings in the Permanent Collection (Art Institute of Chicago, 1925), p. 146, cat. 835.375

Art Institute of Chicago, The Art Institute of Chicago Handbook of Sculpture, Architecture, Paintings and Drawings (Chicago, 1932), p. 164, cat. 22.431.376

Oscar Reuterswärd, Monet: En konstnärshistorik (Bonniers, 1948), p. 286.377

American Federation of Arts, Picture of the Month: A Special Program Offered by the American Federation of Arts, exh. brochure (American Federation of Arts, 1954), pp. 1, cat. 4; 4 (ill.).378

“Claude Monet Painting to be Shown at Gibbes Art Gallery,” News and Courier, Charleston, S. C., Sunday Morning, Dec. 26, 1954, p. Ten–B (ill.).379

“April Picture of the Month,” J. B. Speed Art Museum Bulletin 16, 4 (Apr. 1955), p. 6 (ill.).380

Art Institute of Chicago, “Catalogue,” Art Institute of Chicago Quarterly 51, 2 (Apr. 1, 1957), p. 33.381

William C. Seitz, Claude Monet: Seasons and Moments, exh. cat. (Museum of Modern Art, New York/Los Angeles County Museum of Art/Doubleday, 1960), p. 61, cat. 52.382

Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings in the Art Institute of Chicago: A Catalogue of the Picture Collection (Art Institute of Chicago, 1961), p. 320.383

John Coplans, Serial Imagery, exh. cat. (Pasadena Art Museum, 1968), pp. 23, fig. 2c; 27.384

Priscilla Colt, introduction to Color and Field, 1890–1970, exh. cat. (Albright-Knox Art Gallery/Dayton Art Institute/Cleveland Museum of Art, 1970), p. 16.385

Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Dayton Art Institute, and Cleveland Museum of Art, Color and Field, 1890–1970, exh. cat. (Albright-Knox Art Gallery/Dayton Art Institute/Cleveland Museum of Art, 1970), p. 31, cat. 14 (ill.).386

Grace Seiberling, “The Evolution of an Impressionist,” in Paintings by Monet, ed. Susan Wise, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago, 1975), pp. 32, 33.387

Susan Wise, ed., Paintings by Monet, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago, 1975), p. 144, cat. 87 (ill.).388

Taft Museum, Best of Fifty, exh. cat. (Taft Museum, 1977), pp. 62–63 (ill.).389

Metropolitan Museum of Art, Monet’s Years at Giverny: Beyond Impressionism, exh. cat. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1978), pp. 56, cat. 13 (ill.); 156.390

Daniel Wildenstein, “Monet’s Giverny,” Metropolitan Museum of Art, Monet’s Years at Giverny: Beyond Impressionism, exh. cat. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1978), p. 21.391

Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, Peintures, 1887–1898 (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), pp. 38; 42, n. 1032; 140; 141, cat. 1278 (ill.).392

Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 (Fall 1984), pp. 6; 7; 8–9, pl. 3; 14; 18, fig. 13 (ill.); 19.393

Andrea P. A. Belloli, ed., A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), p. 365.394

Richard R. Brettell, “The Fields of France,” in A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, ed. Andrea P. A. Belloli, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), pp. 246; 260–61; 271, no. 112 (ill.).395

Richard R. Brettell, “La campagne française,” in Réunion des Musées Nationaux, L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, exh. cat. (Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1985), pp. 261; 282–291. no. 112 (ill.).396

Richard R. Brettell, Post-Impressionists (Art Institute of Chicago/Abrams, 1987), pp. 34–35 (detail), 37 (ill.), 118.397

Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), cover (detail); pp. 3; 77; 80; 84–85, pl. 26 (overall and detail); 296, cat. 22.398

John Sallis, “Monet’s Grainstacks: Shades of Time,” Tema Celeste 30 (Mar.–Apr. 1991), pp. 63; 65; 66 (ill.); 67.399

Virginia Spate, Claude Monet: Life and Work (Rizzoli/Thames & Hudson, 1992), pp. 213; 215, ill. 231.400

Neil Harris, Chicago’s Dream, a World’s Treasure: The Art Institute of Chicago, 1893–1993, ed. Teri J. Edelstein, afterword by James N. Wood, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago, 1993), p. 31 (ill.).401

William Mullen, “Art Institute Exhibit Hails Benefactors,” Chicago Tribune (Nov. 2, 1993), p. 1 (ill.).402

George Keyes, “Claude Monet’s Grainstack, Sun in the Mist,” Arts 16, no. 12 (Dec. 1993), p. 7 (ill.).403

Andrew Forge, Monet, Artists in Focus (Art Institute of Chicago, 1995), pp. 44; 47 (detail); 49; 88, pl. 17; 108.404

Karin Hellandsjø, ed., Monet i Norge/Monet en Norvege/Monet in Norway, exh. cat. (Rogaland Kunstmuseum/Musée Rodin, 1995), pp. 49, 57 (ill.).405

Charles F. Stuckey, with the assistance of Sophia Shaw, Claude Monet, 1840–1926, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago/Thames & Hudson, 1995), pp. 117, cat. 96 (ill.); 220; 237.406

Daniel Wildenstein, Monet, or The Triumph of Impressionism, cat. rais., vol. 1 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 268–69, cat. 1278 (detail); 275.407

Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 489; 492, cat. 1278 (ill.); 500.408

Carla Rachman, Monet (Phaidon, 1997), pp. 244; 245, fig. 157; 251.409

Charles S. Moffett, “Effet de Neige: ‘Claude Monet and a Few Others…,’” in Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson, 1998), pp. 20, 22.410

Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson, 1998), pp. 79; 211, cat. 26 (ill.).411

Eliza E. Rathbone, “Road by Saint-Siméon Farm in Winter,” in Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson Publishers, 1998), p. 82.412

Katherine Rothkopf, “Rue Eugène Moussoir at Moret: Winter,” in Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson, 1998), p. 188.413

Katherine Rothkopf, “Stacks of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day); Stack of Wheat; Grainstacks: Snow Effect; Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect),” in Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson, 1998), pp. 120; 122; 125, cat. 26 (ill.).414

John Sallis, La mirada de las cosas: El arte como provocación (Universidad de Los Andes, 1998), pp. [6], fig. 6; 47, fig. 6; 115.415

John Sallis, Shades—of Painting at the Limit (Indiana University Press, 1998), pl. 5; 26, note 13; 37, note 32; 47–48; 54.416

James Henry Rubin, Impressionism, Art and Ideas (Phaidon, 1999), pp. 348; 351 fig. 224.417

Carolyn Bailey Gill, ed., Time and the Image (Manchester University Press, 2000), cover (detail); pp. ix; pl. 1.418

John Sallis, “Time and Image,” in Time and the Image, ed. Carolyn Bailey Gill (Manchester University Press, 2000), p. 20.419

Art Institute of Chicago, Impressionism and Post-Impressionism in the Art Institute of Chicago, selected by James N. Wood (Art Institute of Chicago/Hudson Hills, 2000), p. 134 (ill.).420

Gottfried Boehm, “‘Work’ and ‘Series’: Problems in Modern Conceptions of Pictorial Structure Since Monet,” in Monet and Modernism, ed. Karin Sagner-Düchting, exh. cat. (Prestel, 2001), p. 161 (ill.).421

Annabelle Görgen, “‘Die Unschuld des Auges’: Serielle Wiederholung und die Suche nach den Ursprüngen,” in Monets Vermächtnis: Serie—Ordnung und Obsession, ed. Christoph Heinrich, exh. cat. (Hamburger Kunsthalle/Hatje Cantz, 2001), p. 45.422

Christoph Heinrich, “Une série d’effets différents: Monets ‘Getreideschober’ als Hülle für das Licht, die Zeit, das Universum—und ‘die märchenhafte Kraft und Pracht der Malerei,’” in Monets Vermächtnis: Serie—Ordnung und Obsession, ed. Christoph Heinrich, exh. cat. (Hamburger Kunsthalle/Hatje Cantz, 2001), p. 17.423

Christoph Heinrich, ed., Monets Vermächtnis: Serie—Ordnung und Obsession, exh. cat. (Hamburger Kunsthalle/Hatje Cantz, 2001), pp. 63 (ill.), 183.424

Richard R. Brettell, From Monet to Van Gogh: A History of Impressionism, vol. 2 (Teaching Co., 2002), pp. 161, 166, 183.425

Birgit Zeidler, Claude Monet: Life and Work, trans. by Paul Aston in association with Goodfellow & Egan (Könemann, 2005), p. 69 (ill.).[205]426

Eik Kahng, ed. The Repeating Image: Multiples in French Painting from David to Matisse, exh. cat. (Walters Art Museum/Yale University Press, 2007), p. 196, cat. 58 (ill.).427

Charles F. Stuckey, “The Predications and Implications of Monet’s Series,” in The Repeating Image: Multiples in French Painting from David to Matisse, ed. Eik Kahng, exh. cat. (Walters Art Museum/Yale University Press, 2007), pp. 85; 86, fig. 1; 88.428

Eric M. Zafran, “Monet in America,” in Wildenstein and Co., Claude Monet (1840–1926): A Tribute to Daniel Wildenstein and Katia Granoff, exh. cat. (Wildenstein, 2007), p. 112; 143, fig. 62b.429

Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Impressionists: Master Paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago/Kimbell Art Museum, 2008), pp. 13; 22; 103; 108; 156; 158, cat. 77 (ill.). Simultaneously published as Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Age of Impressionism at the Art Institute of Chicago (Art Institute of Chicago/Yale University Press, 2008), pp. 13; 22; 103; 108; 156; 158, cat. 77 (ill.).[206]430

Jon Kear, The Treasures of the Impressionists (Andre Deutsch/Carlton, 2008), pp. 51 (ill.), 72.431

Timothy A. Long, Bertha Honoré Palmer (Chicago Historical Society, 2009), p. 21 (ill.).432

American Federation of Arts, AFA: A Century in the Arts (American Federation of Arts, 2010), p. 38 (ill.).433

Laura Meixner, “‘Gambling with Bread’: Monet, Speculation, and the Marketplace,” Modernism/Modernity 17, 1 (Jan. 2010), p. 178, fig. 2.434

Hervé Descottes, with Cecilia E. Ramos, Architectural Lighting: Designing with Light and Space (Princeton Architectural Press, 2011), p. 46, fig. 3.10.
435

Archival Documentation from the Durand-Ruel Archives

Inventory number
Stock Durand-Ruel Paris 1075
Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book 1891–1901[207]436

Inventory number
Stock Durand-Ruel New York 847
Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book 1888–93[208]437

Photograph number
Photo Durand-Ruel Paris 220[209]438

Other Documents

Label[210] (fig. 29.31)
439

Small, dark brown paper label with torn edges centered on a light gray surface. Top to bottom, black printed text reads: “DURAND-RUEL,” “PARIS, 16, Rue Laffitte,” and “NEW YORK, 315 Fifth Avenue.” Below, in black handwriting, it reads “Monet,” with “No 547” to the right, followed by “Meules – Effet de neige. Soleil couchant.” The lower right corner is creased and the surface shows light wrinkles.

Fig. 29.31


Label[211] (fig. 29.32)
440

At the top, a torn, dark brown fragment with jagged edges shows faded black printed words: “DURAND-RUEL,” followed by “PARIS, 16 Rue Laffitte,” and “NEW-YORK, 297 Fifth Avenue.” Across the middle, a diagonal tear cuts through larger, dark gray cursive handwriting that clearly reads “Monet,” with additional words that are only partly legible. Near the bottom, more faint cursive words appear in darker strokes toward the right, and the fragment sits against a pale background.

Fig. 29.32


Labels and Inscriptions

Undated

Label
Location: previous Masonite-type backing board (discarded); transcription in conservation file
Method: unknown
Content: SL78.19.3 / Monet at Giverny / Art Institute of Chicago (fig. 29.33)
441

Black typewriter-style text on a white background, left-aligned and arranged top to bottom. The lines read: “SL78.19.3,” “Monet at Giverny,” and “Art Institute of Chicago.” No images or people are present.

Fig. 29.33


Label
Location: previous Masonite-type backing board (discarded); transcription in conservation file
Method: unknown
Content: 13 / Art Institute of Chicago (fig. 29.34)
442

White background with two lines of black text. Top left reads “13”; directly below, left-aligned, reads “Art Institute of Chicago,” which extends much farther across the width. No other elements or colors are present.

Fig. 29.34


Inscription
Location: previous frame; transcription in conservation file
Method: handwritten
Content: cat. # 14 (fig. 29.35)
443

White background with a small line of black text near the center. From left to right, it reads “cat. # 14,” with “cat.” in lowercase, followed by a space, a hash symbol, another space, and the number 14. No other elements are visible.

Fig. 29.35


Labels
Location: conservation file (large Art Institute label taped to brown paper with two smaller labels adhered to large label); original location not documented
1. Method: printed label with typewritten script
Content: FROM / THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO / CHICAGO 3, ILLINOIS, U.S.A. / To / “Haystack, Setting Sun” / by Claude Monet / 22.431
2. Method: printed label with typewritten script
Content: Museum of Modern Art / LOAN / 60.90 / AIC
3. Method: printed label with handwritten script
Content: LOS ANGELES COUNTY MUSEUM / EXPOSITION PARK / LOS ANGELES 7, CALIFORNIA / S.O. No. 60-301N / Box No. 26 (fig. 29.36)
444

Across a brown paper backing, a large cream label with black text sits centered and is bordered by yellowed tape. Top lines read “From The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago 3, Illinois, U.S.A.,” with “To” above typed text that includes the title “Haystack, Setting Sun” by Claude Monet and the number “22.431.” A small perforated beige slip marked “LOAN 60-90 AIC” lies diagonally near the middle, and a rounded beige label at the lower right reads “Los Angeles County Museum, Exposition Park, Los Angeles 7, California,” with handwritten entries “S.O. No. 60-301N” and “Box No. 26.”

Fig. 29.36


Pre-1980

Stamp
Location: pre-1968-treatment stretcher (discarded), transcription in conservation file
Method: unknown
Content: TROT [sic] … (?)OS FRÈRES / 35 Rue Victor Massé / Panneaux etc[212] (fig. 29.37)
445

Light gray handwriting on a pale background, read left to right. At the far left is a faint, unclear word followed by a colon. Center-right, a rectangular outline contains three lines of French text: “TROT[unclear]OS FRÈRES” on the top line, “35 Rue Victor Massé” on the middle line, and “Panneaux etc” on the bottom line.

Fig. 29.37


Label
Location: pre-1968-treatment stretcher (discarded), preserved in conservation file
Method: printed label with handwritten script
Content: DURAND-RUEL / PARIS, 16, Rue Laffitte / NEW YORK, 315 Fifth Avenue / Monet No 847 / “Meules - Effet de / Neige. Soleil couchant” / mrss (fig. 29.31)446

Label
Location: pre-1968-treatment stretcher (discarded), preserved in conservation file
Method: printed label with handwritten script
Content: DURAND-RUEL / PARIS, 16, Rue Laffitte / NEW-YORK 297, Fifth avenue / Monet No1075 [from transcription in conservation file] / meules soleil / couchant […sss?] (fig. 29.32)447

Label
Location: pre-1968-treatment stretcher (discarded), preserved in conservation file
Method: printed label with handwritten script
Content: […] 00 / Please, if [possible, state] when and where picture has / been exhibited. [blank] / Signed, / Mrs Potter Palmer / By / F A Bryden / Date, 3/4-5 [?][213] (fig. 29.38)
448

Top to bottom: A small, torn brown paper label on a white background, with “800” handwritten in black near the top center. Below, faint printed text includes “Please … date when and where picture has been exhibited,” then “Signed,” followed by large cursive handwriting reading “Mrs Potter Palmer” and “F. A. Bryden.” At the bottom, a printed “Date,” line has a handwritten date beginning with “3/4,” with additional small black marks along the left side. The single label fills most of the frame; colors are brown paper with black ink on a white backdrop.

Fig. 29.38


Label
Location: previous Masonite-type backing board (discarded); transcription in conservation file
Method: unknown
Content: The Taft Museum / Cincinnati 2, Ohio / Packing Box 23 (fig. 29.39)
449

Three lines of black text on a white background. Top line: “The Taft Museum.” Middle line: “Cincinnati 2, Ohio.” Bottom line: “Packing Box 23.”

Fig. 29.39


Label
Location: previous Masonite-type backing board (discarded); transcription in conservation file
Method: unknown
Content: Albright-Knox Gallery / 88:70 / Color & Field / 87 (fig. 29.40)
450

Black text on a white background, left-aligned. From top to bottom, the lines read: “Albright-Knox Gallery,” “88:70,” “Color & Field,” and “87.” The characters appear in a monospaced, typewriter-like style with even line spacing.

Fig. 29.40


Post-1980

Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with typewritten script
Content: THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO / artist Monet, Claude / title Stacks of Wheat, Sunset Snow Effect / medium oil on canvas / credit Potter Palmer Collection / acc. # 1922.431 / LZ-341-001 1M 1/90 (Rev. 1/90) (fig. 29.41)
451

Off-white rectangular museum label with black text, read top to bottom. The top line states “The Art Institute of Chicago.” Below, left-aligned fields read “artist” followed by a person’s name (not transcribed here), “title” followed by “Stacks of Wheat, Sunset Snow Effect,” “medium” followed by “oil on canvas,” “credit” followed by a named collection, and “acc. # 1922.431.” A small string of letters and numbers appears in the lower right corner.

Fig. 29.41


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with typewritten script
Content: Museum of Fine Arts / Boston, MA 02115 / W. 1278 GRAINSTACK / Art I., Chicago (fig. 29.42)
452

Centered is a small beige rectangular label with rounded corners, mounted on clear plastic, against a light gray background. From top to bottom, blue text reads “Museum of Fine Arts Boston, MA 02115”; below it, black text with a blue underline and a small blue dot at left reads “W. 1278 GRAINSTACK”; the bottom line, also black text with a blue underline and a blue dot at left, reads “Art I., Chicago.” The label takes up most of the frame, with a narrow transparent border visible around it.

Fig. 29.42


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: MONET IN THE ’90S: / THE SERIES PAINTINGS / Museum of Fine Arts, Boston / Feb 7–Apr 29, 1990 / Art Institute of Chicago / May 19–Aug 12, 1990 / Royal Academy, London / Sep 7–Dec 9, 1990 / CAT# : 22 W: 1278 / TITLE: Grainstacks (Sunset: snow effect) / LENDER: The Art Institute of Chicago (fig. 29.43)
453

A beige rectangular label with worn edges and a faint vertical crease shows dark gray typed text. From top to bottom, it reads: “MONET IN THE ’90s: THE SERIES PAINTINGS,” then “Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Feb 7 – Apr 29, 1990; Art Institute of Chicago, May 19 – Aug 12, 1990; Royal Academy, London, Sep 7 – Dec 9, 1990.” Near the bottom, smaller lines state “CAT#: 22 W: 1278,” “TITLE: Grainstacks (Sunset; snow effect),” and “LENDER: The Art Institute of Chicago.”

Fig. 29.43


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: The Art Institute of Chicago / “Claude Monet: 1840–1926” / July 14, 1995–November 26, 1995 / Catalog: 96 / Wheatstacks (Sunset, Sun Effect) / Meules, effet de neige, soleil couchant / The Art Institute of Chicago, Potter Palmer Collection / (1922.431) (fig. 29.44)
454

Top to bottom, a rectangular off-white museum label with black text reads: “The Art Institute of Chicago,” then “Claude Monet: 1840–1926,” and dates “July 14, 1995 – November 26, 1995.” In the middle, it states “Catalog: 96” and the title “Wheatstacks (Sunset, Sun Effect),” followed by the French title “Meules, effet de neige, soleil couchant.” At the bottom, it credits “The Art Institute of Chicago, Potter Palmer Collection (1922.431).” The label sits in a clear sleeve, with a small brown mark near the upper left.

Fig. 29.44


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with handwritten script
Content: Panel Insert / Installation Date / 9.24.2007 (fig. 29.45)
455

Rectangular white label on a light beige surface. Top line in large black bold text reads “Panel Insert,” with “Installation Date” in smaller black text beneath it. A black-outlined box across the lower half contains gray pencil handwriting that reads “9.24.2007.”

Fig. 29.45


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with handwritten script
Content: Panel Insert / Installation Date / 9.24.2007 (fig. 29.46)
456

At the top, a white rectangular label shows the words “Panel Insert” in large black letters. Below, smaller black text reads “Installation Date.” At the bottom, inside a black-outlined box, a handwritten gray date reads “9 . 24 . 2007.”

Fig. 29.46


Examination and Analysis Techniques

X-radiography

Westinghouse X-ray unit, scanned on Epson Expressions 10000XL flatbed scanner. Scans digitally composited by Robert G. Erdmann, University of Arizona.457

Infrared Reflectography

Goodrich/Sensors Unlimited SU640SDV-1.7RT with J filter (1.5–1.7 µm); Inframetrics Infracam with 1.5–1.73 µm filter; and FujifilmS5 Pro with X-Nite 1000B/2 mm filter (1.0–1.1 µm).458

Transmitted Infrared

Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-Nite 1000B/2 mm filter (1.0–1.1 µm).459

Visible Light

Natural-light, raking-light, and transmitted-light overalls and macrophotography: Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-NiteCC1 filter.460

Ultraviolet

FujifilmS5 Pro with X-NiteCC1 filter and Kodak Wratten 2E filter.461

High-Resolution Visible Light (and Ultraviolet)

Sinar P3 camera with Sinarback eVolution 75 H (B+W 486 UV/IR cut MRC filter, X-NiteCC1 filter, and Kodak Wratten 2E filter).462

Microscopy and Photomicrographs

Sample and cross-sectional analysis using a Zeiss Axioplan 2 research microscope equipped with reflected light/UV fluorescence and a Zeiss AxioCam MRc5 digital camera. Types of illumination used: darkfield, differential interference contrast (DIC), and UV. In situ photomicrographs with a Wild Heerbrugg M7A StereoZoom microscope fitted with an Olympus DP71 microscope digital camera463

X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy (XRF)

Several spots on the painting were analyzed in situ with a Bruker/Keymaster TRACeR III-V with rhodium tube.464

Polarized Light Microscopy (PLM)

Zeiss Universal research microscope.465

Scanning Electron Microscopy/Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (SEM/EDX)

Cross sections analyzed after carbon coating with a Hitachi S-3400N-II VPSEM with an Oxford EDS and a Hitachi solid-state BSE detector. Analysis was performed at the Northwestern University Atomic and Nanoscale Characterization Experimental Center (NUANCE), Electron Probe Instrumentation Center (EPIC) facility.466

Automated Thread Counting

Thread count and weave information were determined by Thread Count Automation Project software.[214]467

Image Registration Software

Overlay images registered using a novel image-based algorithm developed by Damon M. Conover (GW), John K. Delaney (GW, NGA), and Murray H. Loew (GW) of the George Washington University’s School of Engineering and Applied Science and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.[215]468

Image Inventory

The image inventory compiles records of all known images of the artwork on file in the Conservation Department, the Imaging Department, and the Department of Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture at the Art Institute of Chicago (fig. 29.47).
469

Fig. 29.47
Location/Negative # Format Purpose Date Lighting, Notes
652     Unknown  
C33     Unknown  
C33652 8 × 10 B&W negative Posttreatment? Unknown  
E11382     Unknown Normal, overall 
E11383     Unknown Normal, detail: two stacks
C12222     c. 1950  
Conservation 8 × 10 B&W negative Midtreatment June 24, 1968 Normal, overall; partially cleaned
Conservation 8 × 10 B&W negative Midtreatment June 24, 1968 Infrared, overall; partially cleaned
Conservation 8 × 10 B&W negative Midtreatment June 24, 1968 Ultraviolet, overall; partially cleaned
Conservation 35 mm color slide Midtreatment July 1968 Normal, overall; partially cleaned
E26354 4 × 5  CT, B&W print, 35 mm color slide   July 29, 1992 Normal, overall
132282 Digital Loan exam Nov. 2008 Annotated image E26354
Conservation Digital OSCI June 29, 2010 Macro details (14 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI June 29, 2010 Detail images of verso, labels (12 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI June 29, 2010 X-ray films scanned/digitally composited, overall
Conservation Digital  OSCI June 30, 2010 Normal, overall
Conservation Digital OSCI June 30, 2010 Raking light, overall (3 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI June 30, 2010 Ultraviolet, overall (2 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI June 30, 2010 Infrared (Fuji, 1000B/2mm filter), overall
Conservation Digital OSCI June 30, 2010 Transmitted light, overall (5 total)
Conservation Digital  OSCI June 30, 2010 Transmitted infrared (Fuji, 1000B/2mm filter), overall (3 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI July 2, 2010 Infrared (Inframetrics, 1.5–1.73 µm filter), overall
Conservation Digital OSCI July 6, 2010 Photomicrographs of surface (33 total)
G39372 Digital OSCI Jan. 31, 2012 Normal, overall; compositeof G39438–G39461
G39373 Digital OSCI Jan. 31, 2012 Ultraviolet, overall
G39438–G39461 Digital OSCI Jan. 31, 2012 Sections (24 total)
G39374 Digital OSCI Feb. 1, 2012 Normal, frame only
Conservation Digital OSCI Feb. 9, 2012 Infrared (Goodrich, 1.5–1.7 µm filter), overall

Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day), 1890/91 (Cat. 30)

Technical Summary

Claude Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) was painted on a pre-primed, no. 30 landscape (paysage) standard-size linen canvas. The ground consists of a single, off-white layer. A warp-thread match was detected with two other Monet paintings from the Art Institute’s collection: The Customs House at Varengeville (cat. 35 [W1455], inv. 1933.1149) and Charing Cross Bridge, London (cat. 40 [W1527], inv. 1933.1150), suggesting that the fabric for these paintings came from the same bolt of material.[216] The painting has a richly textured surface, which is largely related to the fact that the final painting was executed on top of an earlier composition, which included a second smaller stack on the right side of the canvas. Open brushwork and a few small areas of interlayer cleavage between the two compositions reveal that the field and at least part of the background hills of the earlier composition consisted predominantly of bright green tones, suggesting that the earlier painting may not have been a winter scene. The artist then covered the green field with a layer of lead white–rich paint. Where visible, it appears that a thin, dull-purple toning layer was applied over the white intermediate layer before the snow-covered field was painted. It appears that the final wheat stack was expanded on the left and right sides after the small stack was painted out of the composition. On the left side of the stack, brushwork unrelated to the final composition indicates the inclusion of one or more buildings in this area at an earlier stage of the painting. There are also brushstrokes that form a rough diagonal slope from around the middle of the final stack to the upper right edge of the painting. It is unclear whether these forms were associated with the earlier two-stack composition or whether they could be related to an even earlier composition.[217]470

Multilayer Interactive Image Viewer

The multilayer interactive image viewer is designed to facilitate the viewer’s exploration and comparison of the technical images (fig. 30.1).[218]
471

Top section shows a pale pink and light blue sky with a small pale sun near the upper center. Across the middle, a dark blue tree line runs left to right with small, faint buildings and rooftops scattered along it. Foreground features a large reddish-brown haystack slightly left of center on a white, snow-covered field with a few green patches showing through. No people or animals are present.
Natural Light
A rectangular grayscale field is covered in mottled light and dark gray patches. Across the upper third, a lighter horizontal band stretches left to right, while the center-left features a large, soft-edged oval darker than the surrounding area. The lower third has denser speckled gray and white textures. Thin borders on all sides show small, evenly spaced short marks along the edges.
X-Ray
At the top, a light gray sky spans the scene. Across the middle, a dark, uneven horizontal band runs left to right, forming a distant border. In the lower half, a very large cone-shaped mound sits left of center, while a smaller, lighter gray oval mound is placed higher and to the right; both rest on a flat, light gray ground.
Infrared Reflectogram (1515 nm)
Top third shows a pale gray-blue sky. Across the middle runs a dark blue tree line with touches of brown and purple, with a small light-colored building slightly right of center. In the foreground, a large rounded haystack in dark reddish-brown sits left of center on a wide, pale gray-white snowy field, with a small darker patch on the ground to its right. The haystack is the dominant element, taking up much of the lower left area, while the field extends broadly around it.
Raking Light
Two large light-gray rectangles occupy most of the frame, set side by side against a dark gray background and divided by a narrow vertical black band. From top to bottom, both rectangles show irregular patches and streaks in black, white, and gray, with a darker horizontal band near the upper third and denser mottling toward the lower left of the left rectangle. The edges of both rectangles fade to darker gray, especially along the bottom and corners.
Transmitted Infrared (1.0–1.1 µm)
At the top, a dull gray-blue sky holds a small pale yellow sun near the upper left. Across the middle, a dark blue and purple tree line stretches horizontally, with a few faint, small house shapes on the right. At the bottom, a snowy field in pale gray-blue with touches of pink fills the foreground, where a large, rounded dark red-brown haystack sits on the left, much larger than the distant buildings.
Transmitted Light
At the top, a dark blue sky spans the scene. Beneath it, a horizontal band of deep blue and purple trees runs across the middle, with small buildings on the right that have pale, snow-covered roofs. In the foreground, a very large, rounded haystack sits left of center on a wide, blue and white snowy field with darker blue shading near its base; colors are mainly blue and purple with touches of brown on the haystack and white on the snow.
Ultraviolet
Natural Light
Infrared Reflectogram
Transmitted Infrared
X-Ray

Fig. 30.1

Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890-91). The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155. Interactive image.

Signature

Signed and dated: Claude Monet (lower right, in light reddish-brown paint[219]) (fig. 30.2). Some of the underlying brushstrokes were still wet when the signature and date were applied, specifically, the pale blue strokes (fig. 30.3). Near the edges, these pale blue brushstrokes are directly over the ground layer and may represent final touches added to the corner just before the painting was signed.[220]
472

Top area has pale purple, white, and light blue patches. Across the middle, brown cursive text runs left to right, with short marks and taller strokes varying in height. Bottom area shows more light blue and pink, and a narrow vertical beige strip lines the far right edge.

Fig. 30.2


Detail of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing the signature. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

At the top left, a scale bar labeled 5.0 mm sits above a textured surface in pale blue, lavender, and off-white. From left to right, brown to tan curved bands cross the surface: a hooked curve near the lower left edge, a taller narrow ribbon near the center, and a wider irregular patch on the right. The background shows small ridges and shallow pits, and the brown bands overlap the lighter areas; using the scale bar, each band appears a few millimeters long.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 4
A large black area fills most of the frame. At the bottom right, a small rectangular strip shows light lavender, pale blue, and pink streaks with a line of brown, letter-like markings running left to right; the far right edge has a narrow beige band. Near the center-right of this strip, a thin black rectangle outlines a cluster of the brown markings. The colorful strip occupies a small portion of the overall view, with the black background dominating.
Detail Location

Fig. 30.3

Photomicrograph of the signature of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing some wet-in-wet paint application. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Structure and Technique

Support

Canvas
Flax (commonly known as linen).[221]473

Standard format
The original dimensions were approximately 65 × 92 cm, which corresponds to a no. 30 landscape (paysage) standard-size stretcher.[222]474

Weave
Plain weave. Average thread count (standard deviation): 21.5V (0.8) × 23.4H (0.6) threads/cm; the horizontal threads were determined to correspond to the warp and the vertical threads to the weft.[223] A warp-thread match was determined with two other Monet paintings: The Customs House at Varengeville (cat. 35 [W1455], inv. 1933.1149) and Charing Cross Bridge (cat. 40 [W1527], inv. 1933.1150).[224]475

Canvas characteristics
There is mild cusping along the bottom, left, and right edges, and more pronounced and irregular cusping along the top edge.476

Stretching
Current stretching: Dates to the 1991 conservation treatment (see Conservation History) tacks spaced 3–4 cm apart, with paper interleaf.477

Original stretching: Tack holes spaced 5–7 cm apart. Most of the holes correspond to the cusping pattern, except along the top edge where the cusping is more pronounced and the points of attachment seem to originate from beyond the cut edge of the canvas).[225] There is a series of smaller pinholes around the edges, spaced approximately 3–4 cm apart (only present on the left side of the bottom edge, unless holes are present underneath the current tacks). The purpose and origin of these holes are not known.478

Stretcher/strainer
Current stretcher: Dates to the 1991 conservation treatment (see Conservation History); five-membered wooden stretcher with vertical crossbar, butt-ended mortise and tenon joints, keyable (no keys inserted). Depth: 3 cm479

Original stretcher: Discarded. The pre-1969-treatment stretcher may have been the original stretcher.[226] It was described as having five members including a horizontal (probably vertical, as in drawing) crossbar.[227] Depth: Not documented.480

Manufacturer’s/supplier’s marks
None observed in current examination or documented in previous examinations.481

Preparatory Layers

Sizing
Not determined (probably glue).[228]482

Ground application/texture
There is a ground layer that extends to the edges of all four tacking margins, indicating that the canvas was cut from a larger piece of primed fabric, which was probably commercially prepared. The ground ranges from approximately 20 to 120 µm in thickness (fig. 30.4). Numerous bubble holes were observed in the ground layer (fig. 30.5).
483

Top band is dark gray to black. Across the middle, a thick, uneven white layer runs left to right, dotted with a few tiny black specks. Below it, a brown translucent region fills the lower half, marked by many small rounded cavities. A scale bar in the upper right is labeled 50 µm.
Monet 33.1155 X1385_20x_DIC_d
Top section shows a pale peach sun in a light gray-blue sky above a dark blue treeline stretching across the width. In the middle distance, a few small gray-blue buildings sit near the center-right. Foreground features a large rounded reddish-brown haystack left of center on a white snowy field with faint blue and green tones. A single rectangular picture containing this scene appears on the far left of a wide black background.
Sample Location

Fig. 30.4

Photomicrograph of a cross section of the ground layer of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91). Original magnification: 200×. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Top to bottom, a pale beige surface fills the frame, dotted with many tiny dark round holes and scattered light‑brown oval spots. Near the lower portion, a thin, slightly wavy horizontal line runs across, with more clustered ovals and pits along it. Colors are mostly cream and tan with dark specks. A 2.0 mm scale bar in the lower left corner provides a size reference.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 1
A large black background covers most of the frame. In the lower right, a small rectangular section shows a pastel surface in light purple, blue, and pink with touches of green, and cursive brown writing that reads “Claude Monet” followed by the digits “19.” A narrow beige strip borders the far right edge of this section, and a small black square bracket overlaps near the right side. The colorful section occupies only a small portion of the overall image.
Detail Location

Fig. 30.5

Photomicrograph of the ground layer of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing tiny bubble holes. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Color
The ground is off-white with some dark particles visible under magnification (fig. 30.6).
484

A close-up view shows a cream to light tan, slightly rough surface dotted with many tiny dark pits. From top to bottom and left to right, irregular pale patches and small brown streaks are scattered among the pits, with a thin faint line running near the lower edge. At the bottom center, a black scale bar labeled 2.0 mm provides size reference, with the pits appearing as very small dots spaced less than a few millimeters apart. No other elements are present.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 2
Top section shows a mottled field of pale blue and lavender with small touches of white. Across the center, a row of medium-sized brown, cursive-like marks runs left to right with gaps between strokes. Near the bottom, a horizontal band of light blue fades into beige, and a narrow beige strip lines the right edge with a small black-outlined rectangle near the upper right corner.
Detail Location

Fig. 30.6

Photomicrograph of the ground layer of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91). The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Materials/composition
Analysis indicates the presence of the following components: lead white and calcium carbonate (chalk),[229] with traces of bone black, iron oxide, alumina, silica, and various silicates.[230] Binder: Oil (estimated).485

Compositional Planning/Underdrawing/Painted Sketch

Extent/character
No underdrawing was observed with infrared reflectography (IRR) or microscopic examination.486

Paint Layer

Application/technique and artist’s revisions
The infrared reflectogram clearly shows that the artist originally included another smaller wheat stack on the right side of the painting. This stack was set farther back in the composition than the large stack in the final painting, and it extended up into the area currently occupied by the buildings (fig. 30.7). The painted-out stack is difficult to see in the X-ray and transmitted-infrared images, which may indicate that it was not built up very far. Breaks in the upper paint layers reveal dark blue-gray and brownish paint underneath, which may indicate the general tone of the stack, as far as it was developed (fig. 30.8, fig. 30.9, fig. 30.10).
487

Light to medium gray sky spans the top, meeting a dark, uneven horizontal band across the middle. In the foreground, a very large rounded mound occupies the left side, and a smaller oval mound sits to the right in the midground. The ground is flat and pale gray with scattered darker patches. Colors are only shades of gray: pale gray ground, medium gray mounds, and a dark gray band in the middle.
Infrared Reflectogam (1515 nm)
At the top, a pale pink and light blue sky holds a small, faint sun near the center. Below it, a horizontal band of dark blue and purple trees spans the width, with small gray and brown buildings scattered along the treeline. In the foreground, a large reddish-brown haystack sits left of center on a snow-covered field with patches of green showing through. The haystack appears much larger than the distant buildings, emphasizing that it is in the foreground.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
Infrared Reflectogram
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 30.7

Infrared reflectogram (Surface Optics, 1515 nm) and natural-light images of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing a change made to the composition. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155. Interactive image.

Top left shows a scale bar labeled 2.0 mm. Across the frame, a pale blue to lavender surface with horizontal reddish-brown streaks fills the view. A narrow vertical fissure runs near the center, exposing off-white areas and small bright blue bits; to its left are two small tan, oval bumps aligned vertically. Fine dark, hair-like strands lie across the surface.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 19
Left side shows a snowy rural scene, while the rest of the frame is solid black. At the top, blue and purple clouds fill the sky. In the middle, a small building with a pitched roof sits slightly left of center, with another low structure nearby. Across the bottom, a broad field of snow stretches forward in whites with touches of pale blue and pink.
Detail Location

Fig. 30.8

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing a blue layer below the surface. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

At the top-left, a horizontal scale bar labeled 5.0 mm sits above a rough, multicolored surface. From top to bottom, the surface shows broad horizontal bands and patches of gray‑blue, purple, and reddish‑brown, with small lighter gray areas and scattered dark pits. The central area is the most irregular, with thin broken ridges and cracks, while the lower portion has wider, smoother streaks with a few shiny highlights on raised spots.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 20
Top section shows a cloudy sky in shades of blue and light purple. In the middle, a low ridge holds a small house with a pitched roof slightly left of center, with a small black rectangular mark just below it; colors here are muted purples, blues, and pinks. The bottom half is a wide snow-covered field in pale white, light blue, and faint green, making the house look small compared to the broad sky and ground.
Detail Location

Fig. 30.9

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing a bluish-gray layer below the surface. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155. 

Top left, a black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm sits above a textured surface that is mostly pale purple with light gray and cream areas. Across the middle and trending toward the lower right, irregular dark gray to near-black patches and small pits are scattered, with faint yellow-green smears around some spots. Fine, hairlike lines and shallow grooves run diagonally across the center and lower left.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 22
At the top, a cloudy sky in deep blue and purple spans the scene. Below it, a small house with a sloped roof sits slightly left of center, with faint shapes of nearby trees or structures in bluish gray and muted red. The foreground is a wide snow-covered field in white and pale blue with uneven bands running across it. The house is small compared to the open field, and colors are mainly blue, purple, white, and touches of red.
Detail Location

Fig. 30.10

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing a dark-blue layer below the surface. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Throughout the field, breaks in the brushwork and a few small losses in the upper paint layers resulting from interlayer cleavage provide glimpses of paint from the earlier composition and indicate that the painting originally had a different color scheme. Losses near the left, right, and bottom edges reveal bright green and yellowish-green paint layers underneath the snow-covered field (fig. 30.11, fig. 30.12, fig. 30.13). Similar bright green was observed in the layers underneath the buildings on the right side of the canvas. Other hues observed from the underlying painting (although not as prevalent as the green tones) include pale orange, pink, and gray as well as a very dark brown tone to the right of the stack in the final painting (fig. 30.14). The presence of these bright colors may indicate that the earlier composition was not a winter scene.[231] An area of the green paint, exposed at a loss near the right edge (fig. 30.15), was analyzed with X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF) and was found to contain the copper-and-arsenic-containing pigment emerald green. This bright green was not detected in the upper layers of the painting. PLM analysis also detected emerald green in lower paint layers (fig. 30.16) but not in any other samples taken from representative areas of the final composition. These findings suggest that the pigment was used only in the earlier composition.[232] A buildup of textural brushwork unrelated to the final composition appears to be associated with a thick, brushy application of lead white–rich paint in the foreground of the painting. Evidence of this layer is present to the right of the painted-out stack and in areas where the bright green underlayer is exposed (fig. 30.17). It does not, however, appear to be present underneath either the final or the painted-out stack. This may represent a kind of blocking-out layer that was aimed specifically at covering the bright green field of the earlier painting. Localized interlayer cleavage has occurred between the earlier composition and this intermediate layer, which appears to have been applied when the underlying painting was already surface dry, probably resulting in poor adhesion. Where the intermediate layer is visible at the edges of losses, it appears to be covered with a thin, dull purplish-gray layer, which seems to serve as a toning layer for the final composition (fig. 30.18, fig. 30.19, fig. 30.20). The edges of the paint losses often look quite soft, as if the paint was still somewhat fluid when the losses occurred. In at least one place—a small loss near the lower right corner—a later brushstroke curves over the edges of the paint loss, suggesting that the loss occurred while the artist was still working on the painting (fig. 30.21).
488

Top area shows a tan-to-brown band with scattered small dark spots and two thin vertical dark lines. Across the center sits an irregular, pale white patch with hints of blue-gray, surrounded by tan and lavender regions. The lower section is mostly lavender and purple with rough ridges and shallow cracks. A black scale marker labeled “2.0 mm” appears in the bottom right corner.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 10
A snow-covered landscape fills the left half of the frame, while the right half is solid black. Across the top, a cloudy sky in deep blue and purple stretches left to right. In the middle, a small house with a sloped roof sits slightly left of center, shown in pale violet, gray, and muted red, with low, indistinct blue and reddish forms around it. The bottom half shows a wide snowy field in white with light blue and pink streaks, and a small white rectangle outlined in black appears near the lower-right edge of the painted area.
Detail Location

Fig. 30.11

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing a green layer below the surface. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Top area shows orange-red streaks over gray-green patches with small dark spots. Moving downward and left to right, the surface becomes mostly pale purple with raised ridges and narrow grooves, interspersed with irregular green-gray areas. Lower right has smoother light purple sections with a few tiny dark specks. A scale bar labeled 2.0 mm appears in the bottom right corner.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 11
A large black area fills most of the frame, with a small rectangular scene in the bottom-left. From top to bottom within that scene, a blue and purple sky sits above two small buildings with pitched roofs near the left-center. The foreground is a wide, snow-covered field in pale whites and light blues. A tiny outlined square appears near the right edge of the scene.
Detail Location

Fig. 30.12

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing a green layer below the surface. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Top right shows a scale bar labeled 1.0 mm; a blue surface fills the view. From top to bottom, small irregular specks and fragments in white, pale yellow, and brown are scattered, with a few thin dark strands curving across the area. Soft reddish streaks run diagonally from the upper right toward the lower left, and several slightly larger light pieces cluster near the center and bottom left. Most specks appear well under 1 mm in size.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 24
A large black area fills the top and right sides, with the scene contained in the lower-left. From left to right: pale white and light blue snow covers the ground; behind it, a band of blue-gray and purple vertical forms spans the background; on the right, a large cone-shaped mound in reddish-brown and orange dominates, rising from the bottom edge toward the top of the painted area. The mound appears much larger than the other elements, taking up roughly half of the scene’s width.
Detail Location

Fig. 30.13

Photomicrograph of the hill in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing a green layer below the surface. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Top left shows maroon and brown with a small streak of bright orange, blending rightward into light gray and lavender. Across the center, pale gray dominates with patches of light blue and purple forming raised swirls and streaks. Bottom area continues in pale gray with soft pink and blue accents, with thicker ridges concentrated near the lower right.

Fig. 30.14


Detail from right of the wheat stack in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing a dark-brown underlayer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

At the top left, a black scale bar labeled 2.0 mm sits above a band of light purple with rippled, diagonal ridges. Across the middle, vertical patches alternate in tan-brown, white, and pale green, with thin white ridges separating many of the areas. Near the bottom, tan-brown continues with small white breaks and a small dark green triangular patch near the lower center-left. The scale label shows these features are only a few millimeters across.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 13
Top left, a blue and purple sky with patches of white sits above a small house with a low, sloped roof near the center-left. Below it, a broad snow-covered field in white with pale blue and pink areas fills the foreground. The house appears small compared to the wide field. The scene occupies the lower-left portion of the overall frame, while the remaining area, especially the right side and top, is solid black.
Detail Location

Fig. 30.15

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing a green layer below the surface. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

On a black background, a small wedge-shaped fragment lies horizontally. From top to bottom: a thin pale strip, a narrow blue‑green band with scattered dark blue and a few small red dots, and a thicker white area with tiny holes and gray specks. The right end tapers to a point while the left side is thicker and uneven. A scale marker at the lower right reads 50 µm.
Monet 33.1155 x1386_20x_dkfld
At the top, a pale gray-blue sky holds a small, faint yellow sun near the upper left. Across the middle, a dark blue band of trees runs left to right, with a cluster of small light-colored buildings with white roofs just right of center. In the foreground, a large brown haystack sits slightly left of center on a white, snow-covered field with a thin strip of green near its base.
Sample Location

Fig. 30.16

Photomicrograph of a cross section of the paint and ground layers of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing a green layer that contains Emerald green from an earlier painting stage. Original magnification: 200x. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Top section shows pale lavender and gray with faint streaks of light peach and blue across a rough, uneven surface. The middle area has scattered patches of light blue, lavender, and soft pink with a few thin pale green lines, with colors blending without clear shapes. The bottom shifts cooler with more light blue and small hints of green, keeping the same textured look. No recognizable objects or people are present; color areas are small and irregular and fill the frame.

Fig. 30.17


Detail of the lower right edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing the texture of the underlying brushwork. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155. 

Top left shows a black scale bar labeled 2.0 mm. In the center, an irregular, elongated yellow‑green patch with shallow horizontal ridges is bordered by jagged edges. Surrounding areas are pale purple to white with rough, uneven texture and faint grooves. Based on the scale, the central patch is a few millimeters long, and a thin dark strand lies near the left side.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 16
Top edge shows a narrow horizontal band of muted red and gray, with a broad expanse of pale blue‑gray water below. On the left, a large reddish‑brown rock sits along the edge, meeting the water at a lighter border of whites and pale greens. In the foreground, the water is light blue and white with scattered patches of green near the base of the rock; the water fills most of the view while the rock occupies a smaller portion.
Detail Location

Fig. 30.18

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing traces of intermediate layers applied between the two painting campaigns. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Top left shows a black scale bar labeled 2.0 mm above an uneven surface colored pale blue to lavender. At the center, an irregular oval area exposes ridged bands running diagonally from upper left to lower right in light green and tan, bordered by a thin, ragged white edge. The blue-lavender material continues around the opening with small lumps and pits, and the entire visible area spans only a few millimeters based on the scale.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 17
Most of the frame is solid black, with a small rectangular scene in the lower-left corner. At the top of that scene runs a thin reddish‑brown horizontal band; along the left edge is a reddish‑brown rocky mass. The center and right are filled with water in white, light blue, pale purple, and pale green, with a slightly brighter light blue strip near the bottom. A small black outlined square sits over the lower‑right area of the water.
Detail Location

Fig. 30.19

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing traces of intermediate layers applied between the two painting campaigns. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Top left shows a scale bar labeled 2.0 mm. From top to bottom, a rough light purple surface with small cracks and shallow ridges fills the view; near the upper center-left is a narrow vertical pit, and near the middle is a larger oval opening roughly 1 to 2 mm wide. Inside the larger opening are green, yellow, and tan areas, with a thin dark line running vertically nearby; the surrounding surface remains pale purple with scattered tiny pits.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 18
A small scene of water and a rocky edge sits in the lower-left of a large black field. From left to right within the scene, a reddish-brown rock face lines the left edge with a narrow green band at its base, while pale blue and white water fills the center and right, marked with scattered light green and faint purple patches; a thin reddish-brown strip runs across the upper margin. The water occupies most of the scene, making the rock a smaller element by comparison.
Detail Location

Fig. 30.20

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing traces of intermediate layers applied between the two painting campaigns. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Across the top is a black scale bar labeled 2.0 mm. From top to bottom, raised ridges of light purple cover the upper area with vertical streaks of white and tan; at center, an elongated wedge of pale green runs downward with a darker green tip near the lower edge, and the left side shows tan bands against the purple. Along the bottom, tan-brown patches mix with white streaks, and thin hairline cracks and faint scratches cross several areas.
Monet 33.1155 MIC 13
Top area shows a blue and purple sky with lighter cloud-like patches. Below, slightly left of center, a small building with a sloped roof sits against a broad expanse of white and pale blue ground that fills the lower half. Colors are mainly blue, purple, white, gray, and touches of reddish brown. The right half of the overall image is solid black, and a small dark rectangle appears near the lower-right edge of the colored section.
Detail Location

Fig. 30.21

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing a brushstroke that conforms to the edges of the paint loss. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

In the background area, at the left edge of the large stack, a series of distinct linear brushmarks, visible in the X-ray and transmitted-infrared (IR) images, seems to indicate that the artist originally painted some architectural forms in this location (fig. 30.22). Other brushwork unrelated to the final composition includes a series of radio-opaque strokes that form a diagonal, running from approximately the center of the final stack to the upper-right edge of the painting (fig. 30.23). It is unclear whether these forms were associated with the earlier composition that included the smaller stack or whether they may have been part of an even earlier composition.
489

Top section shows light gray, cloudy streaks with a faint horizontal band running left to right near the upper third. The middle features a large, soft-edged oval patch of darker gray slightly left of center, with lighter swirls around it. Bottom area is denser and more mottled, mixing light and medium gray patches. A thin rectangular border surrounds the field, marked by small, evenly spaced short lines along all four edges.
X-Ray
At the top, a dark border surrounds two broad, light gray rectangles placed side by side, divided by a narrow dark vertical band near the center. Moving left to right, both rectangles show mottled gray textures with swirls and streaks; the left side has a larger dark patch and diagonal scuffs, while the right side is more evenly speckled. A horizontal darker band crosses near the upper third of both panels. Toward the bottom, the lighter areas continue with scattered dark spots, fading into darker edges along the lower border.
Transmitted Infrared (1.0–1.1 µm)
Large, rounded haystack sits in the foreground slightly left of center, colored reddish-brown with touches of orange and purple, on snow-covered ground with a few green patches near the bottom edge. Behind it, a horizontal band of dark blue and lavender trees spans the middle distance, and small buildings with pitched, pale roofs appear to the right of the haystack. At the top, a pale sky in light pink, peach, and gray stretches across, with a small soft yellow sun near the upper left. The haystack appears much larger than the distant buildings, emphasizing its closeness to the viewer.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Transmitted Infrared (1.0–1.1 µm)
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 30.22

X-ray, transmitted infrared (Fuji, 1.0–1.1 µm), and natural-light details of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing forms beneath the surface. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155. Interactive image.

Top to bottom, a rectangular field in black, white, and gray shows cloudy, streaked patterns. A lighter horizontal band stretches across the upper third, and a large, soft, darker oval occupies much of the center, spanning about half the width and height. The bottom third has dense, speckled grays, with similar streaks continuing along the right side. A thin border with small repeating short lines frames all four edges.
X-Ray
Two large light gray rectangles sit side by side within a darker gray background, separated by a narrow vertical dark strip; everything is in black, white, and gray. From top to bottom on the left rectangle, a darker horizontal band lies near the top, the center is mid‑gray with darker smudges and a faint diagonal streak, and the bottom area is slightly lighter with scattered dark patches. On the right rectangle, a similar darker band runs near the top, the middle shows finely textured grays with a few thin dark lines, and the lower edge lightens slightly; a thin dark border frames all sides.
Transmitted Infrared (1.0–1.1 µm)
Top area shows a pale gray and pink sky with a small, faint sun near the upper center. Across the middle, a dark blue-purple tree line runs left to right, with a few small gray-brown buildings on the right side that appear dusted with white. In the foreground, a large reddish-brown haystack sits slightly left of center on a snow-covered field with a few green patches near its base; single scene with no people.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Transmitted Infrared (1.0–1.1 µm)
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 30.23

X-ray, transmitted infrared (Fuji, 1.0–1.1 µm), and natural-light details of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing a diagonal form running from the center of the stack to the upper right edge of the canvas. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155. Interactive image.

In the process of painting the final composition, some modifications were made to the large wheat stack. The X-ray indicates that the stack was originally significantly smaller, possibly with its peak positioned further to the right (fig. 30.24). It was then subsequently expanded along the left and right sides. The stack appears to have been planned from early on in the painting of the final composition, and it is possible that it coexisted (in its earlier, smaller incarnation) with the small, painted-out stack at some point. The smaller dimensions of the stack were in place in the final composition, when the snowy landscape in the distance was painted around it, including the hills, trees, and buildings, which were added on top of the painted-out stack. The blue hills and the screen of trees behind the final stack can be seen to continue underneath the edges of the stack up to its original borders in the X-ray and detail images (fig. 30.24, fig. 30.25). On the right side of the painting, brushstrokes that do not correspond to the final composition seem to indicate that some adjustments were made to the buildings: the roof of the building farthest to the right appears to have originally extended further to the right, and a strong horizontal stroke near the right edge may have been related to another building that was ultimately not included in the final composition (fig. 30.26). The paint of the sky is quite thickly built up, making it difficult to see the underlying layers (fig. 30.27). Most of the surface consists of a fairly continuous wet-in-wet paint application.
490

Rectangular field in shades of gray, with pale gray streaks across the top and a faint horizontal band near the upper third. In the center-left, a large, soft-edged dark gray oval area occupies roughly a third of the width and height, surrounded by mid-gray tones and scattered lighter patches. The lower half is densely mottled with light and medium gray speckles, and all four edges show evenly spaced short white tick marks forming a thin border.
X-Ray
Top: a pale sky with a small, dim sun near the upper center, colored light pink, peach, and gray-blue. Middle: a continuous dark blue and purple tree line runs left to right, with small, snow-covered rooftops and buildings scattered along its base. Foreground: a large, rounded haystack in brown, red, and ochre sits left of center on a snowy field with patches of green grass near the bottom edge; the haystack appears much larger than the distant buildings because it is closest to the viewer.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 30.24

X-ray and natural-light images of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing possible changes made to the dimensions of the wheat stack. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155. Interactive image.

Across the top, a narrow band of pale blue and white runs horizontally. Below it, deep blue fills most of the background with lighter blue and white patches. In the center foreground, a large triangular area of reddish-brown dominates, streaked with red, purple, orange, and small touches of yellow. The central shape takes up most of the lower half, while the blue areas frame it on the left, right, and upper edges.

Fig. 30.25


Detail of the wheat stack in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing that the edges of the stack were painted on top of the landscape. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Across the top, pale gray horizontal streaks and patches fill the upper third. In the center-left, a large, soft dark gray oval sits within a field of mixed light and medium gray marks, with a thin darker diagonal line crossing its upper-right area. The lower third shows denser, speckled light gray patterns with scattered white patches. A thin dark border frames the rectangle, with small, evenly spaced short white marks along all four edges.
X-Ray
Near the top, a pale sky in light pink and light blue holds a small muted yellow sun slightly left of center. Across the middle runs a dark blue tree line, with a few small gray and brown buildings clustered on the right. In the foreground, a large reddish-brown haystack dominates the left-center of a snowy field shaded in white with blue and purple shadows, with small green patches near its base; no people or animals are present.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 30.26

X-ray and natural-light details of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing possible changes made to the buildings. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155. Interactive image.

Top to bottom, a wide field of pale lavender-blue fills most of the scene. Near the upper center-right, a small pale yellow-green circle sits within soft pink patches; the circle is much smaller than the overall frame. The lower third shifts to lighter gray-lavender with faint pink streaks, and a narrow dark blue horizontal band runs along the bottom edge.

Fig. 30.27


Detail of the sky in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the brushwork. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Overall, the paint layer has a rich, textural surface, with thick brush-marked strokes and areas of low impasto, the texture coming from the two superimposed compositions as well as the intermediate layer applied to much of the foreground (fig. 30.28). For the most part, the paint has a relatively dry, stiff, paste-like consistency, with a predominantly matte surface finish. Some areas, such as the expanded left edge of the stack, appear more fluid with wet-in-wet paint application, the brushstrokes of which have settled out to some degree, resulting in a slightly smoother surface and suggesting that the artist added extra medium to the paint (fig. 30.29). Some of the final touches added to the painting include the reddish-brown trees in the background (fig. 30.30) and the colored diagonal strokes applied over the surface of the snow, which consist largely of dry brushstrokes that deposited mainly on the high points of the underlying paint texture (fig. 30.31). A deep ridge along the right edge of the painting seems to have occurred when the paint was still soft and may be related to framing or some kind of transport device (fig. 30.32).
491

Figs. 30.28–30.32

From left to right, a tall, irregular area of reddish-brown sits along the far left edge. The center and right are covered by a wide field of light gray blended with pale lavender, light blue, and faint peach, forming soft, wavy patches. Near the bottom left, small streaks of olive and dark green appear, fading into the same light gray and blue toward the lower right.

Fig. 30.28


Detail of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing the textural brushwork. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Top third shows a wide band of pale gray and light blue with a thin line of soft pink near the upper edge. Across the middle, a broad expanse of dark to bright blue stretches left to right, with scattered lighter blue patches. In the lower center, a large rounded mound fills much of the bottom third, colored red and brown with orange and yellow streaks along its upper edge, overlapping the blue area behind it.

Fig. 30.29


Detail of the wheat stack in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing fluid paint application. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Top area shows a cloudy sky in deep blue, purple, and gray. Center area features a small building with a sloped roof, slightly left of center, partly hidden by trees in muted purple and reddish-brown; the structure is small compared with the width of the scene. Bottom area is a flat field in light gray and off-white with hints of blue and red-brown.

Fig. 30.30


Detail of the background in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing final strokes of reddish-brown used to delineate the trees. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Top right holds a broad reddish-brown area with touches of purple. Across the middle and lower portions, irregular swaths of light gray, white, and pale blue are broken by small patches of olive and dark green that angle from left to right. The bottom section shifts to softer pastel blues and pinks with a few scattered green clusters. A thin light strip runs along the far left edge.

Fig. 30.31


Detail of the lower left corner of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing touches of green and blue applied over the dried paint of the snow. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Top area shows mottled patches of light lavender and pale pink within a wide area of blue-violet. Along the right edge, a darker blue vertical band sits next to a narrow beige strip. The lower portion is mostly blue and purple with raised ridges and streaks, plus small areas of muted red and brown near the bottom left. A single textured surface with uneven, layered color fills the frame.

Fig. 30.32


Detail of the right edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing an impression made in the paint when it was still soft. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Painting tools
Brushes including 1.0 cm width, flat ferrule (based on width and shape of brushstrokes). A few brush hairs are embedded in the paint surface.492

Palette
Analysis indicates the presence of the following pigments: lead white, cadmium yellow, chrome yellow, vermilion, red lake, viridian, emerald green, cobalt blue, and ultramarine blue.[233] UV fluorescence indicates the liberal use of red lake throughout the landscape (fig. 30.33).[234]
493

Top area shows a dark blue sky. Left foreground holds a large, conical stack in deep brown and purple, dominating a snow-covered field in pale blue and white. A dark band of trees stretches across the middle, and small gray‑violet buildings sit to the right. Colors are mostly cool blues and purples with some dark brown; the stack is the largest element.

Fig. 30.33


Ultraviolet-light image of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) showing the bright pink fluorescence of red lake used throughout the landscape. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Binding media
Oil (estimated).[235]494

Surface Finish

Varnish layer/media
The painting was cleaned in 1991 and selectively varnished with dilute Arkon-P90 to saturate areas of localized blanching in the wheat stack only (see ). The paint surface has a relatively dry, matte quality in most areas. It is noted in the conservation file that a natural-resin varnish (estimated) was removed in 1969; the origin of that varnish is not known.[236]495

Conservation History

In 1969, yellowed varnish and overpaint were removed. The painting was wax-resin lined and restretched on an ICA spring stretcher. A layer of polyvinyl acetate (PVA) AYAA was applied. Inpainting was carried out. A layer of methacrylate resin L-46 was applied, followed by a layer of AYAA.[237]496

In 1991, the AYAA and methacrylate varnish layers applied in 1969 were removed. Residues of starch-paste adhesive from the 1969 treatment were removed mechanically after the residues had been dampened. The wax-resin lining was removed. The canvas was edge lined and mounted on a tongue and groove stretcher prepared with a loose lining. Selective revarnishing of the wheat stack was carried out with dilute Arkon-P90, in order to minimize the effects of localized blanching after the varnish removal. Minor scattered inpainting was carried out.[238]497

Condition Summary

The painting is in good condition. The canvas was edge lined and loose lined in 1991 after removal of the wax-resin lining that had been applied in 1969. The canvas is stretched flat and taut on the stretcher. There is some loss and abrasion in the ground layer on the original tacking margins. The paint layer has a rich, textural surface. A few small areas of interlayer cleavage in the field and the sky appear to be old and seem to be due to poor adhesion between the upper paint layers and the earlier composition. There is localized retouching associated with some of these losses. There is some flattening of thicker paint and dark accretions around the edges, which appear to be the result of framing while the paint was still soft. There is a general network of age cracks; this is most noticeable in the sky, which has a slightly quilted appearance. In addition, there are fine, slightly opened drying cracks in the upper layers of the wheat stack, revealing light-colored paint beneath. There are some starch-paste residues in the recesses of the paint texture. The painting is currently unvarnished, except for the localized application of Arkon P-90 on the upper part of the stack, which was applied to deal with blanching issues. Overall, the paint surface is relatively matte, with some slight variations in sheen across the surface.

Kimberley Muir498

Frame

Current frame (installed in 1995: this frame was originally on The Customs House at Varengeville [transferred in 1995] (cat. 35): The frame is not original to the painting. It is a French (Parisian), late-nineteenth-century, Durand-Ruel Régence, ogee frame with cast foliate and center cartouches and fillet liner. The frame is both water and oil gilded. Red-brown bole was used on the perimeter, cast foliate ornament on the face and sight molding, and the liner. Red bole was used for the scotia sides. The gilding was applied directly to the plaster on the ogee face in the crosshatched areas between the ornament. The quadrillage face has been rubbed to bring out the white of the plaster. The frame has an overall bronze tone with casein or gouache raw umber and gray washes. The frame has a glued pine substrate with a cast plaster face. At a later date the original back of the frame was planed flat, removing all construction history and provenance. A back frame was then glued to the back. All back and interior surfaces have been overpainted. The molding, from perimeter to interior, is fillet with stylized cast dovetail-pierced egg-and-flower molding; scotia side; ogee face with a cast quadrillage bed and center and corner foliate and floral cartouches with cabochon centers on a double-lined diamond bed with punched centers; fillet; sanded front frieze; fillet; ogee with stylized leaf-tip-and-shell sight molding; and independent fillet liner with cove sight (fig. 30.34).[239]
499

Top: a pale blue-gray sky with a small yellow sun sits over a dark blue tree line. Middle: small gray and brown buildings with sloped roofs line the horizon to the right. Foreground: a large reddish-brown haystack occupies the center-left, set on a snowy field in whites and light blues. The haystack appears much larger than the distant buildings.

Fig. 30.34


Installation of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) in its current frame. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.1155.

Previous frame (installed by 1975; removed 1995) The work was previously housed in a twentieth-century reproduction of a Régence frame with swept sides and foliate rocaille cartouches (fig. 30.35, fig. 30.36).[240]
500

On a tan gallery wall, four gold-colored framed landscapes hang with small black number plaques. From left to right: a smaller square scene shows a single brown haystack in a pale field with a band of rocky cliffs behind; in the center, two medium frames stacked vertically show (top) a flat field with green trees and tall narrow trees under a pale blue sky, and (bottom) a rocky hillside and a narrow stream with green shrubs. On the far right, the largest horizontal scene shows two haystacks in a wide field beneath an orange sky with blue‑purple tones on the ground. The right work is the largest, the center pair are mid-sized, and the left piece is the smallest.

Fig. 30.35


Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) in a previous frame, installed in Paintings by Monet, Art Institute of Chicago, Mar. 15–May 11, 1975. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

At the top, faint wall text reads “THE POTTER PALMER AND BERTHA HONORE PALMER GALLERY” above a row of six medium-sized, framed paintings spaced evenly across a light wall. In the middle ground, several adults stand facing the paintings, with a low bench at center and a short rope barrier along the wall. In the foreground, an adult on the left wears a dark suit and tie looking slightly left, and an older person on the right wears a light jacket and scarf looking slightly right. The scene is in black, white, and gray tones, with a smooth wall and a patterned floor.

Fig. 30.36


Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) in a previous frame, gallery installation. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

Kirk Vuillemot
501

Sold by the artist to Durand-Ruel, Paris, May 9, 1891, for 2,500 francs.[241]502

Sold by Durand-Ruel, Paris, to Durand-Ruel, New York, Oct. 25 or Nov. 16, 1892.[242]503

Sold by Durand-Ruel, New York, to Martin A. Ryerson, Chicago, Mar. 31, 1893, for $1,500.[243]504

Bequeathed by Martin A. Ryerson (died 1932), Chicago, to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1933.
505

Paris, Galeries Durand-Ruel, Exposition d’oeuvres récentes de Claude Monet, May 1891, cat. 9, as Meule. (Effet de neige; temps couvert), Appartient à M. Durand-Ruel.[244]506

Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Inaugural Exhibition, Jan. 7–Feb. 7, 1915, cat. 255, as The Haystack, Lent by Martin A. Ryerson, Chicago, Ill.507

Art Institute of Chicago, “A Century of Progress”: Loan Exhibition of Paintings and Sculpture for 1934, June 1–Oct. 31, 1934, cat. 218.[245]508

Decatur (Ill.) Art Center, Masterpieces of European and American Art Lent by the Art Institute of Chicago, Mar. 4–25, 1945, cat. 12; Springfield (Ill.) Art Association, Apr. 1945, no cat.[246]509

Chicago, Remington Rand, window display, Apr. 14–30, 1952, no cat.[247]510

University of Chicago, Lexington Hall, Nov. 17–Dec. 17, 1952, no cat.[248]511

Park Forest (Ill.) Art Center, Mar. 25–Apr. 22, 1956, no cat.[249]512

Art Institute of Chicago, The Paintings of Claude Monet, Apr. 1–June 15, 1957, no cat. no.[250]513

Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings by Monet, Mar. 15–May 11, 1975, cat. 86 (ill.). (fig. 30.37)
514

On a tan wall, four framed landscape paintings are arranged left to right, with two stacked vertically in the center. Left: a small gold-framed view shows a single cone-shaped mound in a pale field beside dark blue water and distant brown cliffs. Center top: a light view of a flat field with several tall narrow trees and low blue‑gray hills; center bottom: a rocky slope with a stream and scattered green trees. Right: the largest gold-framed painting shows two cone-shaped mounds in a pale field under an orange and lavender sky, with small black wall labels and white numbers positioned between the works.

Fig. 30.37


Installation of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) in Paintings by Monet, Art Institute of Chicago, Mar. 15–May 11, 1975. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

Los Angeles County Museum of Art, A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, June 28–Sept. 16, 1984, cat. 111 (ill.); Art Institute of Chicago, Oct. 23, 1984–Jan. 6, 1985; Paris, Galeries Nationales d’Exposition, Grand Palais, as L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, Feb. 4–Apr. 22, 1985.[251]515

Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg), State Hermitage Museum, Ot Delakrua do Matissa: Shedevry frantsuzskoi zhivopisi XIX–nachala XX veka, iz Muzeia Metropoliten v N’iu-Iorke i Khudozhestvennogo Instituta v Chikago [From Delacroix to Matisse: Masterpieces of French Painting of the Nineteenth to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, and the Art Institute of Chicago], Mar. 15–May 16, 1988, cat. 30 (ill.); Moscow, Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, May 30–July 30, 1988.516

Boston, Museum of Fine Arts, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, Feb. 7–Apr. 29, 1990, cat. 25 (ill.); Chicago, Art Institute of Chicago, May 19–Aug. 12, 1990; and London, Royal Academy of Arts, Sept. 7–Dec. 9, 1990. (fig. 30.38)
517

Spacious museum gallery with a tall white ceiling and a large rectangular skylight overhead; walls are pale blue‑gray and the floor is light brown herringbone wood. Left and right walls hold rows of small to medium rectangular paintings in gold frames, mostly showing soft blues, purples, and pinks; each side also has a tall glass door, and low metal barriers run along the baseboards. A wide doorway in the far wall opens to another room, where additional framed works hang, including one centered piece visible in the distance.

Fig. 30.38


Installation of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) in Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, Art Institute of Chicago, May 19–Aug. 12, 1990. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

Art Institute of Chicago, Claude Monet, 1840–1926, July 22–Nov. 26, 1995, cat. 99 (ill.) (fig. 30.39)
518

Warm brown wood-paneled walls meet at a corner, displaying five medium-size gold-framed paintings spaced left to right. Each painting centers a large, dark, rounded mound, with background colors varying by piece: soft tan and purple; gray and pink; orange and violet; pale blue and gray; and light lavender and tan. Small wall labels sit beside each frame. A low black barrier runs along the walls above a wide expanse of light brown herringbone wood floor.

Fig. 30.39


Installation of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (1890/91) in Claude Monet, 1840–1926, Art Institute of Chicago, July 22–Nov. 26, 1995. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

Washington, D.C., Phillips Collection, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, Sept. 19, 1998–Jan. 3, 1999, cat. 23 (ill.); San Francisco, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco at the Center for the Arts at Yerba Buena Gardens, Jan. 30–May 2, 1999 (Washington only).519

Hamburg, Hamburger Kunsthalle, Monets Vermächtnis: Serie—Ordnung und Obsession, Sept. 28, 2001–Jan. 6, 2002, no cat. no. (ill.).520

Fort Worth, Tex., Kimbell Museum of Art, The Impressionists: Master Paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago, June 29–Nov. 2, 2008, cat. 78 (ill.).
521

Galeries Durand-Ruel, Exposition Claude Monet, exh. cat. (Galeries Durand-Ruel, 1891), p. 15, cat. 9.[252]522

Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Catalogue of the Inaugural Exhibition, exh. cat. (Minneapolis Society of Fine Arts, 1915), p. 44, cat. 255.523

Gustave Geffroy, Claude Monet: Sa vie, son temps, son oeuvre (G. Crès, 1922), p. 189.524

Art Institute of Chicago, “Accessions and Loans,” Bulletin of the Art Institute of Chicago 16, 3 (May 1922), p. 47.525

M. C., “Monets in the Art Institute,” Bulletin of the Art Institute of Chicago 19, 2 (Feb. 1925), p. 20.526

Art Institute of Chicago, Catalogue of “A Century of Progress”: Exhibition of Paintings and Sculpture, 1934, ed. Daniel Catton Rich, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago, 1934), p. 37, cat. 218.527

George Slocombe, “Giver of Light,” Coronet 3, 5 (Mar. 1938), p. 23 (ill.).528

“Critics of Art Hear Lecture by Dr. Neal,” Decaturian Weekly 42, 12 (Mar. 16, 1945), p. 1.529

Decatur Art Center, Masterpieces of European and American Art Lent by the Art Institute of Chicago, exh. cat. (Decatur Art Center, 1945), p. 7, cat. 12.530

Oscar Reuterswärd, Monet: En konstnärshistorik (Bonniers, 1948), p. 286.531

Art Institute of Chicago, “Catalogue,” Art Institute of Chicago Quarterly 51, 2 (Apr. 1, 1957), p. 33.532

Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings in the Art Institute of Chicago: A Catalogue of the Picture Collection (Art Institute of Chicago, 1961), p. 320.[253]533

J. Patrice Marandel, “Monet in Chicago,” Art Gallery Magazine 18, 6 (Mar. 1975), p. 48 (ill.).534

Susan Wise, ed., Paintings by Monet, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago, 1975), pp. 50, pl. 6; 143, cat. 86 (ill.).535

Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, Peintures, 1887–1898 (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), pp. 38; 42, n. 1032; 142; 143, cat. 1281 (ill.).536

Robert Gordon and Andrew Forge, Monet (Abrams, 1983), pp. 160 (ill.), 163, 292.537

Andrea P. A. Belloli, ed., A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), p. 365.538

Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 (Autumn 1984), pp. 6; 7; 12; 13, pl. 5; 16–17, fig. 9 (ill.); 21, n. 6, n. 7.539

Richard R. Brettell, “The Fields of France,” in A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, ed. Andrea P. A. Belloli, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), pp. 246; 260; 270, no. 111 (ill.).540

Richard R. Brettell, “La campagne française,” in L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, exh. cat. (Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1985), pp. 261; 282; 290, no. 111 (ill.).541

Richard R. Brettell and Scott Schaefer, “Impressionism in Context,” in A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, ed. Andrea P. A. Belloli, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), pp. 19, 21, 22.542

Richard R. Brettell and Scott Schaefer, introduction to L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, exh. cat. (Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1985), pp. 17, 18, 19.543

Sylvie Gache-Patin and Scott Schaefer, “Impressionism and the Sea,” in A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, ed. Andrea P. A. Belloli, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), p. 284.544

Sylvie Gache-Patin and Scott Schaefer, “La mer,” in L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, exh. cat. (Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1985), p. 304.545

Françoise Heilbrun, “Appendix: The Landscape in French Nineteenth-Century Photography,” in A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, ed. Andrea P. A. Belloli, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), p. 359.546

Françoise Heilbrun, “Le paysage dans la photographie française au XIXe siècle et ses rapports avec la peinture du realisme à l’impressionnisme,” in L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, exh. cat. (Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1985), p. 384.547

Scott Schaefer, “The Retreat from Paris,” in A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, ed. Andrea P. A. Belloli, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), p. 305.548

Scott Schaefer, “L’évasion loin de Paris,” in L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, exh. cat. (Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1985), p. 328.549

John House, “Monet and the Genesis of His Series,” in Auckland City Art Gallery, Claude Monet: Painter of Light, exh. cat. (Auckland City Art Gallery/NZI , 1985), pp. 19; 21, fig. 11.550

Charles F. Stuckey, ed., Monet: A Retrospective (Hugh Lauter Levin, 1985), p. 163 (ill.).551

Richard Shiff, “The End of Impressionism,” in The New Painting: Impressionism, 1874–1886, ed. Charles S. Moffett, exh. cat. (Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, 1986), pp. 64; 66, fig. 5.552

Ministry of Culture, SSSR; State Hermitage Museum; Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; and Art Institute of Chicago, Ot Delakrua do Matissa: Shedevry frantsuzskoi zhivopisi XIX–nachala XX veka, iz Muzeia Metropoliten v N’iu-Iorke i Khudozhestvennogo Instituta v Chikago [From Delacroix to Matisse: Masterpieces of French Painting of the Nineteenth to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, and the Art Institute of Chicago], trans. from English by Iu. A. Kleiner and A. A. Zhukov, exh. cat. (Avrora, 1988), pp. 82–83, cat. 30 (ill.).553

Grace Seiberling, Monet in London, exh. cat. (High Museum of Art/University of Washington Press, 1988), p. 10 (ill.).554

Richard Kendall, ed., Monet by Himself: Paintings, Drawings, Pastels, Letters, trans. Bridget Strevens Romer (Macdonald Orbis, 1989), p. 203 (ill.); 320.555

Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), pp. 3; 77; 80; 82, pl. 24; 296, cat. 25.556

Karin Sagner-Düchting, Claude Monet, 1840–1926: Ein Fest für die Augen (Benedikt Taschen Verlag, 1990), pp. 161–62 (ill.), 170. Translated by Karen Williams Wall,Claude Monet 1840-1926: A Feast for the Eyes (Taschen, 2004), pp. 161–62 (ill.).557

Sylvie Patin, Monet: “Un oeil . . . mais, bon Dieu, quel oeil!” (Gallimard/Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1991), pp. 106–07 (ill.), 172. Translated by Anthony Roberts as Monet: The Ultimate Impressionist (Abrams, 1993), pp. 106–07 (ill.); 171.558

Anne Rorimer, “The Date Paintings of On Kawara,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 17, 2 (1991), p. 122, fig. 2.559

John Sallis, “Monet’s Grainstacks: Shades of Time,” Tema Celeste International Art Magazine 30 (Mar.–Apr. 1991), pp. 63; 64 (ill.); 67, nn. 3, 13.560

Gérald Collot, “Blanc comme neige. . .” in Couleurs de neige, exh. cat. (Musée Savoisien/Skira, 1992), p. 16 (ill.).561

Sophie Fourny-Dargère, Monet, Profils de l’art (Chêne, 1992), p. 118, fig. 2.562

Christoph Heinrich, Claude Monet, 1840–1926 (Benedikt Taschen, 1993), pp. 55, 58 (ill.), 95.563

Andrew Forge, Monet, Artists in Focus (Art Institute of Chicago, 1995), pp. 44; 89, pl. 18; 108.564

Charles F. Stuckey, with the assistance of Sophia Shaw, Claude Monet, 1840–1926, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago/Thames & Hudson, 1995), p. 120, cat. 99 (ill.); 220.565

Daniel Wildenstein, Monet, or The Triumph of Impressionism, cat. rais., vol. 1 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 274, cat. 1281 (ill.); 275.566

Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 494, cat. 1281 (ill.); 500.567

David Spence, Monet: Impressionism (Ticktock, 1997), p. 27.[254]568

Matthias Arnold, Claude Monet, Rowohlts Monographien (Rowohlt, 1998), p. 133 (ill.).569

Charles S. Moffett, “Effet de neige: ‘Claude Monet and a Few Others. . . ,’” in Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson, 1998), pp. 20, 22.570

Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson, 1998), pp. 79; 210–11, cat. 23.571

Eliza E. Rathbone, “Road by Saint-Siméon Farm in Winter,” in Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson, 1998), p. 82.572

Katherine Rothkopf, “Rue Eugène Moussoir at Moret: Winter,” in Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson, 1998), p. 188.573

Katherine Rothkopf, “Stacks of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day); Stack of Wheat; Grainstacks: Snow Effect; Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect),” in Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson, 1998), pp. 120; 121, cat. 23 (ill.); 122.574

John Sallis, Shades—Of Painting at the Limit (Indiana University Press, 1998), pl. 6; 26, n. 13; 48.575

Art Institute of Chicago, Impressionism and Post-Impressionism in the Art Institute of Chicago, selected by James N. Wood (Art Institute of Chicago/Hudson Hills, 2000), p. 133 (ill.).576

Christoph Heinrich, “Une série d’effets différents: Monets ‘Getreideschober’ als Hülle für das Licht, die Zeit, das Universum—und ‘die märchenhafte Kraft und Pracht der Malerei,’” in Monets Vermächtnis: Serie—Ordnung und Obsession, ed. Christoph Heinrich, exh. cat. (Hamburger Kunsthalle/Hatje Cantz, 2001), p. 17.577

Christoph Heinrich, ed., Monets Vermächtnis: Serie—Ordnung und Obsession, exh. cat. (Hamburger Kunsthalle/Hatje Cantz, 2001), pp. 62 (ill.), 183.578

Richard R. Brettell, From Monet to Van Gogh: A History of Impressionism, vol. 2 (Teaching Co., 2002), pp. 161, 167, 183.579

Anna Gruetzner Robins, “‘Slabs of Pink and Lumps of Brown’: The Critical Reaction to the Exhibition of a Monet Grainstack Painting in Britain in 1893,” in Monet and French Landscape: Vétheuil and Normandy, ed. Frances Fowle (National Galleries of Scotland, 2006), pp. 159; 168, n. 10, n. 11.580

Charles F. Stuckey, “The Predications and Implications of Monet’s Series,” in The Repeating Image: Multiples in French Painting from David to Matisse, ed. Eik Kahng, exh. cat. (Walters Art Museum/Yale University Press, 2007), pp. 85; 87–88, fig. 9.581

Eric M. Zafran, “Monet in America,” in Wildenstein and Co., Claude Monet (1840–1926): A Tribute to Daniel Wildenstein and Katia Granoff, exh. cat. (Wildenstein, 2007), p. 112; 143, fig. 62b.582

Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Impressionists: Master Paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago/Kimbell Art Museum, 2008), pp. 22; 103; 108; 156; 158, cat. 78 (ill.). Simultaneously published as Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Age of Impressionism at the Art Institute of Chicago (Art Institute of Chicago/Yale University Press, 2008), pp. 22; 103; 108; 156; 158, cat. 78 (ill.).[255]583

Félicie de Maupeou, “Esthétique et littérature artistique,” under the direction of Ségolène Le Men, La bibliothèque de Monet, exh. cat. (Citadelles & Mazenod, 2013), pp. 106–07 (ill.).
584

Documentation from the Durand-Ruel Archives

Inventory number
Stock Durand-Ruel Paris 942

Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book 1891–1901[256]585

Inventory number
Stock Durand-Ruel New York 976

Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book 1888–93[257]586

Photograph number
Photo Durand-Ruel Paris 219[258]
587

Other Documents

Label[259] (fig. 30.40)
588

A rectangular dark reddish label with torn and missing sections sits on a blue background. From top to bottom, bold black text reads “DURAND-RUEL,” followed by smaller printed lines “PARIS, 16, Rue Laffitte” and “NEW YORK, 315 Fifth Avenue” (left side partly missing). In the middle, large black cursive reads “Monet,” with “No 976” at the upper right. Across the lower half, two lines of faint cursive are broken by tears; fragments include “meule...” and “...efft de neig...,” with additional letters unclear.

Fig. 30.40


Purchase receipt, April 12, 1893589

Labels and Inscriptions

Undated

Number
Location: frame
Method: handwritten script
Content: 1933.1149 [in ink with 55 written over 49 in pencil] (fig. 30.41)
590

Top section shows a silver-colored cross-head screw and a small brass-colored plate on a dark brown, grain-textured surface. Along the lower strip, from left to right, black handwritten numbers read “1933.1149,” with a small round hole just to the right of the last digit. Below this strip, the background appears as an out-of-focus gray area seen through an opening.

Fig. 30.41


Pre-1980

Label
Location: pre-1969-treatment stretcher (discarded); preserved in conservation file
Method: printed label with handwritten script
Content: DURAND-RUEL / PARIS, 16, Rue Laffitte / NEW YORK, 315 Fifth Avenue / Monet No9[7?]6 / meule effet de neige / mass (fig. 30.42)
591

A small, dark red label with torn edges and cracks sits on a blue background. From top to bottom, black printed text reads “DURAND-RUEL,” then “PARIS, 16, Rue Laffitte,” and “NEW YORK, 315 Fifth Avenue”; below, handwritten in black ink is “Monet” with “No 976” to the right, followed by cursive French words that are partly legible (“meules, effet de neige”) and a fragmented final line. Missing pieces along the left and bottom edges interrupt several words.

Fig. 30.42


Post-1980

Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with typewritten script
Content: Museum of Fine Arts / Boston, MA 02115 / W. 1281 GRAINSTACK / Art I., Chicago (fig. 30.43)
592

Small beige paper label with blue and black printed text. Top line in blue reads “Museum of Fine Arts Boston, MA 02115,” with a blue dot to the left. Middle section shows black text “W. 1281 GRAINSTACK” with a thin blue underline and a blue dot on the left; bottom line reads “Art I., Chicago” in black with another blue underline and left blue dot.

Fig. 30.43


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with typewritten script
Content: Museum of Fine Arts / Boston, MA 02115 / W. 1455 V-CH / Art I., Chicago[260] (fig. 30.44)
593

A small, worn beige paper label with rounded corners occupies most of the frame on a white background; the top-right corner is creased. Top line: a blue dot followed by blue text reading “Museum of Fine Arts Boston, MA 02115.” Middle line: black text “W. 1455 V-CH” above a thin blue line; bottom line: black text “Art I., Chicago” above another thin blue line with a blue dot at the far left.

Fig. 30.44


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO / artist Claude Monet / title “Stack of Wheat; Snow Effect / Overcast Day” 1890–91 / medium oil on canvas / credit: Mr.+Mrs. M. A. Ryerson Coll. / acc. # 1933.1155 / LZ-341-001 1M 1/90 (Rev. 1/90) (fig. 30.45)
594

White rectangular label with black text, read top to bottom. Top line: “THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO.” Below are entries: “artist Claude Monet,” “title ‘Stack of Wheat;Snow Effect Overcast Day’ 1890-91,” “medium oil on canvas,” “credit Mr.+Mrs. M. A. Ryerson Coll.,” and “acc. # 1933.1155.” Small black text in the lower right reads “LZ-341-001 1M 1/90 (Rev. 1/90).”

Fig. 30.45


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: MONET IN THE ’90s: / THE SERIES PAINTINGS / Museum of Fine Arts, Boston / Feb 7–Apr 29, 1990 / Art Institute of Chicago / May 19–Aug 12, 1990 / Royal Academy, London / Sep 7–Dec 9, 1990 / CAT# : 25 W: 1281 / TITLE : Grainstack (Snow effect; overcast day) / LENDER: The Art Institute of Chicago (fig. 30.46)
595

A rectangular beige label with black printed text sits on a light surface, with a small white glare near the right edge. From top to bottom, the text reads: “MONET IN THE ’90s: THE SERIES PAINTINGS; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Feb 7 – Apr 29, 1990; Art Institute of Chicago, May 19 – Aug 12, 1990; Royal Academy, London, Sep 7 – Dec 9, 1990; CAT#: 25 W: 1281; TITLE: Grainstack (Snow effect; overcast day); LENDER: The Art Institute of Chicago.”

Fig. 30.46


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: The Art Institute of Chicago / “Claude Monet: 1840–1926” / July 14, 1995–November 26, 1995 / Catalog: 99 / Wheatstack (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) / Meule, effet de neige, temps couvert / The Art Institute of Chicago, Mr. and Mrs. Martin A. / Ryerson Collection (1933.1155) (fig. 30.47)
596

An off-white rectangular label with black text sits inside a clear sleeve. Top to bottom, it reads: “The Art Institute of Chicago,” “Claude Monet: 1840–1926,” “July 14, 1995 – November 26, 1995,” and “Catalog: 99.” Below, the artwork title appears as “Wheatstack (Snow Effect, Overcast Day)” and the French title “Meule, effet de neige, temps couvert.” The bottom line states “The Art Institute of Chicago, Mr. and Mrs. Martin A. Ryerson Collection (1933.1155).”

Fig. 30.47


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with handwritten script
Content: Panel Insert / Installation Date / 2-27-08 (fig. 30.48)
597

Top center shows bold black text reading “Panel Insert,” with smaller black text below it reading “Installation Date.” A black-outlined rectangular box spans the lower portion and contains a handwritten date: “2 - 27 - 08” in gray pencil. The label has a white background.

Fig. 30.48


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with handwritten script
Content: Panel Insert / Installation Date / 2-27-08 (fig. 30.49)
598

At the top, a white rectangular label reads “Panel Insert” in bold black text. Below it, smaller black text says “Installation Date,” and a bordered box underneath contains the handwritten date “2-27-08” in dark gray. The label sits on a light, off-white surface.

Fig. 30.49


Examination and Analysis Techniques

X-radiography

Westinghouse X-ray unit, scanned on Epson Expressions 10000XL flatbed scanner. Scans digitally composited by Robert G. Erdmann, University of Arizona.599

Infrared Reflectography

Surface Optics modified near-infrared hyperspectral camera (collects 4 nm spectral-band images from 960 to 1730 nm); Goodrich/Sensors Unlimited SU640SDV-1.7RT with H filter (1.1–1.4 µm) and J filter (1.5–1.7 µm); Inframetrics Infracam with 1.5–1.73 µm filter; Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-Nite 1000B/2 mm filter (1.0–1.1 µm).600

Transmitted Infrared

Fujifilm Pro with X-Nite 1000B/2 mm filter (1.0–1.1µm).601

Visible Light

Natural-light, raking-light, and transmitted-light overalls and macrophotography: Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-NiteCC1 filter.602

Ultraviolet

Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-NiteCC1 filter and Kodak Wratten 2E filter.603

High-Resolution Visible Light (and Ultraviolet)

Sinar P3 camera with Sinarback eVolution 75 H (PECA 918 UV/IR interference cut filter and Kodak Wratten 2E filter).604

Microscopy and Photomicrographs

Sample and cross-sectional analysis using a Zeiss Axioplan 2 research microscope equipped with reflected light/UV fluorescence and a Zeiss AxioCam MRc5 digital camera. Types of illumination used: darkfield, differential interference contrast (DIC), and UV. In situ photomicrographs with a Wild Heerbrugg M7A StereoZoom microscope fitted with an Olympus DP71 microscope digital camera.605

X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy (XRF)

Several spots on the painting were analyzed in situ with a Bruker/Keymaster TRACeR III-V with rhodium tube.606

Polarized Light Microscopy (PLM)

Zeiss Universal research microscope.607

Scanning Electron Microscopy/Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (SEM/EDX)

Cross sections analyzed after carbon coating with a Hitachi S-3400N-II VP-SEM with an Oxford EDS and a Hitachi solid-state BSE detector. Analysis was performed at the Northwestern University Atomic and Nanoscale Characterization Experimental Center (NUANCE), Electron Probe Instrumentation Center (EPIC) facility.608

Automated Thread Counting

Thread count and weave information were determined by Thread Count Automation Project software.[261]609

Image Registration Software

Overlay images registered using a novel image-based algorithm developed by Damon M. Conover (GW), John K. Delaney (GW, NGA), and Murray H. Loew (GW) of the George Washington University’s School of Engineering and Applied Science and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.[262]
610

Image Inventory

The image inventory compiles records of all known images of the artwork on file in the Conservation Department, the Imaging Department, and the Department of Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture at the Art Institute of Chicago (fig. 30.50).
611

Fig. 30.50
Location/Negative # Format Purpose Date Lighting, Notes
B1373     Unknown Normal, overall
C9463   Pretreatment? Unknown  
C34777   Posttreatment? Unknown Normal, overall
E14266 4 × 5 CT   Unknown  
E17562     Unknown Normal, detail
Conservation 35 mm color slide Pretreatment June 1969 Normal, overall
Conservation 35 mm color slide Pretreatment June 1969 Normal, detail
Conservation 8 × 10 B&W negative Pretreatment June 24, 1969 Normal, overall
Conservation 8 × 10 B&W negative Pretreatment June 24, 1969 Infrared, overall
Conservation 8 × 10 B&W negative Pretreatment June 24, 1969 Ultraviolet, overall
Conservation X-ray Pretreatment June 25, 1969 Test strip: upper center only
E11934 4 × 5 CT Used as pretreatment Jan. 6, 1989 Normal, overall
Conservation 13527 4 × 5 CT Pretreatment Mar. 1, 1990 Normal, overall
E17842     Jan. 1991? Normal, overall
132156 Digital Loan exam Nov. 2008 Annotated image E17842
Conservation Digital OSCI July 15, 2010 Detail images of verso, labels (9 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI July 16, 2010 X-ray films scanned/digitally composited, overall
Conservation Digital  OSCI July 19, 2010 Normal, overall
Conservation Digital OSCI July 19, 2010 Raking light, overall (2 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI July 19, 2010 Ultraviolet, overall (3 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI July 19, 2010 Infrared (Fuji, 1000B/2 mm filter), overall
Conservation Digital OSCI July 19, 2010 Infrared (Inframetrics, 1.5–1.73 µm filter), overall
Conservation Digital OSCI July 19, 2010 Macro details (11 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI July 23, 2010 Photomicrographs of surface (24 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI July 26, 2010 Transmitted light, overall (2 total)
Conservation Digital  OSCI July 26, 2010 Transmitted infrared (Fuji, 1000B/2 mm filter), overall (2 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI Aug. 22, 2011 Infrared (Surface Optics modified near-infrared hyperspectral camera, 0.96–1.73 µm), overall
G39815 Digital OSCI Feb. 27, 2012 Normal, overall; composite ofG39818–G39837
G39818–G39837 Digital OSCI Feb. 27, 2012 Sections (20 total)
G39816 Digital OSCI Feb. 29, 2012 Normal, frame only
Conservation Digital OSCI Feb. 29, 2012 Infrared (Goodrich, no filter,0.9–1.7 µm), overall
G41236 Digital OSCI Sept. 25, 2012 Ultraviolet, overall 

Stack of Wheat, 1890/91 (Cat. 31)

Technical Summary

Claude Monet’s Stack of Wheat was painted on a pre-primed, no. 30 landscape (paysage) standard-size linen canvas. The ground consists of a single, off-white layer. The technical examination revealed that a different composition was started on the canvas. This was partially obliterated by a layer of white paint that was applied before the final composition was painted. It is difficult to tell precisely what the subject of the earlier composition was, but it seems to have included a prominent hill in the background on the left side. The stack does not appear to have been part of the earlier composition, based on the relatively dense buildup of the paint layers underneath the stack. Brushwork unrelated to the final composition is difficult to interpret due to interference from both the brushwork of the intermediate layer and the final painting. Breaks in the upper paint layers show that the earlier painting included bright green paint in areas underneath the field, the stack, and the hills, bright red paint in the foreground, and brighter shades of blue throughout the sky. This palette may indicate that the earlier composition was not a winter scene. The final painting consists largely of a wet-in-wet buildup of the brushwork. Final touches include the blue strokes dragged lightly over dry paint layers of the field and some finishing strokes applied at the lower corners. The stack appears to have been enlarged slightly on the left and right sides, with the brushstrokes at the edges extending over the field.[263]
612

Multilayer Interactive Image Viewer

The multilayer interactive image viewer is designed to facilitate the viewer’s exploration and comparison of the technical images (fig. 31.1).[264]
613

Pale gray sky spans the top. Below it, a row of bluish trees runs left to right with low blue hills behind; on the far right, faint small buildings appear near the horizon. In the foreground, a large cone-shaped haystack in brown, gray, and red-brown sits near the center, standing in front of the tree line. The ground is a field covered in irregular patches of white, pale blue, and brown, and the haystack is the largest element in the scene.
Natural Light
Single grayscale view with a large, mottled surface filling the frame. From top to bottom, light and medium gray streaks run diagonally from the upper right toward the lower left, with a denser, triangular cluster of brighter lines near the left-center. The lower half, especially the bottom and lower-right, shows heavier patches and speckles of white and light gray, while the upper corners appear slightly darker. A thin black border with small, evenly spaced tick marks surrounds the edges.
X-Ray
Top area shows a pale gray sky above a dark gray, uneven tree line stretching left to right across the horizon. Centered in the middle to lower half is a large conical mound, medium gray with lighter streaks, set in an open field. The foreground is a broad expanse of medium to dark gray ground with scattered darker marks, and the mound is the largest element, dominating the center with the tree band forming a thinner strip behind it.
Infrared Reflectogram (1.5–1.7 µm)
At the top, a pale gray sky spans the scene. Below it, a dark blue ridge of distant hills runs left to right with a darker band of trees in front. In the foreground, a large conical haystack sits slightly left of center, dark brown with bluish-white highlights on its surface. The flat field around it is mottled blue-gray and brown, and near the right horizon are faint small buildings.
Raking Light
At the top, a deep blue‑gray sky spans the scene. Across the middle, a dark blue line of distant hills sits behind a row of darker trees. In the foreground, a large, dark, conical haystack slightly left of center dominates the lower half, surrounded by a wide field with mottled light blue and purple patches. No people or animals are visible.
Ultraviolet
Alt text for the image
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Infrared Reflectogram

Fig. 31.1

Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91). The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29. Interactive image.

Signature

Signed and dated: Claude Monet 91 (lower left, in brownish paint[265]) (fig. 31.2). Some of the underlying paint was dry when the painting was signed, but other areas, specifically the thick pale-blue strokes along the bottom edge were still wet. This pale-blue paint appears to be related to some finishing touches added at the lower left and lower right corners (fig. 31.3).[266]
614

Top section shows mixed patches of pale gray, lavender, pink, and blue. Across the middle from left to right, a line of small curved brown marks sits over lighter blue and white areas; the marks are not clearly readable as text. The bottom edge has a thin beige strip, and no recognizable figures or objects are present.

Fig. 31.2


Detail of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing the signature. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29

Upper area has pale gray‑lavender swirls with patches of light blue and mauve. Across the middle, a series of short, curved brown marks runs left to right, surrounded by blended off‑white and blue areas; to the right, small red‑orange patches mix with blue and tan. Lower area is mostly pale gray with scattered peach and blue flecks, and the surface shows raised ridges and grooves throughout.

Fig. 31.3


Detail of the signature of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing some wet-in-wet paint application. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Structure and Technique

Support

Canvas
Linen (estimated).[267]615

Standard format
The original dimensions were approximately 65 × 92 cm. This corresponds to a no. 30 landscape (paysage) standard-size canvas.[268]616

Weave
Plain weave. Average thread count (standard deviation): 26.2V (0.8) × 20.5H (0.8) threads/cm. The vertical threads were determined to correspond to the warp and the horizontal threads to the weft.[269] No weave or thread count matches were detected with other Monet paintings analyzed for this project.617

Canvas characteristics
There is strong cusping along the left and top edges, moderate cusping along the right edge, and mild cusping on the bottom edge.618

Stretching
Current stretching: The original canvas was mounted onto a one-sixteenth-inch solid metal support[270] (the tacking margins were probably removed at this time); the metal support was then mounted onto a canvas and stretched onto the current stretcher before entering the Art Institute in 1983 (see Conservation History); tacks spaced 2–3 cm apart.619

Original stretching: Unknown; original tacking edges removed in previous treatment (see Conservation History).620

Stretcher/strainer
Current stretcher: Five-membered wood stretcher with vertical crossbar, and keyable, mitered mortise and tenon joints (six of ten keys inserted). Depth: 1.8 cm (outer edge).621

Original stretcher: Discarded, not documented. Depth: Unknown.622

Manufacturer’s/supplier’s marks
None observed in current examination or documented in previous examinations.623

Preparatory Layers

Sizing
Not determined (probably glue).[271]624

Ground application/texture
Because the original tacking margins have been removed (see Conservation History), it is not possible to know whether the ground extended to the edges of all of the tacking margins. The ground does, however, appear to continue onto the tacking edges, parts of which are visible around the edges of the painting (fig. 31.4, fig. 31.5), thus suggesting that this was a pre-primed canvas. The ground consists of a single layer that ranges from approximately 10 to 80 µm in thickness (fig. 31.6).
625

Top area shows broad, mottled patches of lavender, pink, brown, and small touches of dark green and blue. Moving downward, the center has layered swaths of pale purple and gray with scattered, slimmer streaks of brown and blue. The bottom lightens to soft blue and violet, with a thin beige strip running along the bottom and right edges.

Fig. 31.4


Detail of the lower right corner of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing remnants of the original tacking edges. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Top section shows a rough light purple area with small bumps; just below it runs a thin, uneven band of green dots. The middle and lower areas are tan with many brown speckles, followed near the bottom by a thin dark gray line and a narrow brown strip along the edge. Colors are arranged in horizontal layers from purple to green to tan across the frame, and a scale marker at the upper right reads 5.0 mm, showing the view covers only a few millimeters.
Monet 83.29 MIC 1
At the top, a narrow horizontal band of gray and green stretches across. Below it, most of the scene is a broad expanse of pale lavender, white, and light blue with scattered medium-blue streaks. Toward the bottom, denser patches of brown, green, pink, and light blue appear, including a small dark-blue area near the lower right; the pale central area occupies most of the space.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.5

Photomicrograph of the bottom edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing the ground layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Top to bottom, a white horizontal band sits above a broad green band, with a slightly thinner white band below; all three run across the frame. Near the upper right, a small triangular patch of green appears within the top white band, while the surrounding areas are black. The central green band extends most of the width of the frame and is thicker than the white bands. A scale bar at the lower left reads 50 µm, indicating a microscopic scale.
Monet 83.29 x1389_20x_dkfld_b
Large black background with a small rectangular picture positioned in the bottom-right corner. The picture shows a red-brown conical haystack centered in a pale field speckled with white. Behind it, a row of leafless trees in brown and bluish tones stands before low blue hills under a gray sky. A small white arrow sits just below the lower-right edge of the picture.
Sample Location

Fig. 31.6

Photomicrograph of a cross section of the ground and paint layers of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91). Original magnification: 200×. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Color
The ground is off-white, with dark particles visible under magnification (fig. 31.7).
626

Top-right corner shows a scale bar labeled 1.0 mm. From top to bottom, a cream-beige, slightly glossy surface fills the view, peppered with many small, irregular dark brown to nearly black flecks. Thin hairline cracks and faint lines run between the flecks, and the pattern continues evenly from left to right; most flecks appear much smaller than the 1.0 mm bar.
Monet 83.29 MIC 2
A narrow horizontal band along the top spans in gray‑green and brown. Below it, most of the scene is a broad, flat expanse filled with pale lavender, light blue, and white, with scattered patches of tan and gray and a few deeper blue spots. Near the lower area and edges, small streaks of soft pink, rusty brown, and muted green appear, with the very bottom fading to almost white.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.7

Photomicrograph of the bottom edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing the ground layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Materials/composition
Analysis indicates the presence of the following components: lead white and calcium carbonate (chalk), with traces of iron oxide, alumina, various silicates, and silica.[272] Binder: Oil (estimated).627

Compositional Planning/Underdrawing/Painted Sketch

Extent/character
No underdrawing was observed with infrared reflectography (IRR) or microscopic examination.628

Paint Layer

Application/technique and artist’s revisions
The painting has a rich textural surface that incorporates both wet-in-wet and wet-over-dry paint application, using a variety of brushwork. Technical imaging and close examination of the paint surface reveal the presence of brushwork and underlying layers of bright hues that are unrelated to the final composition. This is especially apparent at the edges of the painting where strokes of bright green and red paint are visible in the foreground area (fig. 31.8; fig. 31.9, fig. 31.10); in addition, shades of pale and bright blue can be seen in the sky (fig. 31.11; fig. 31.12). It appears that the artist used a broadly applied layer of white paint to cover the earlier, more colorful painting before beginning the final composition (fig. 31.13). This intermediate layer has a strong brushmarked surface that corresponds to the diagonal strokes (upper left to lower right) seen in the X-ray, especially in the sky and the stack areas (fig. 31.14).[273] The white layer is visible at the edges of the painting (fig. 31.15) and at small areas of loss and breaks in the brushwork of the final composition (fig. 31.16, fig. 31.17, fig. 31.18). The white layer is not continuous but rather consists of open brushwork that often reveals glimpses of the underlying painting (fig. 31.19, fig. 31.20). Localized areas of interlayer cleavage between the earlier painting campaign and the intermediate white layer indicate that the earlier painting was already surface dry when it was painted over, resulting in poor adhesion between it and the layers applied on top (fig. 31.21). The relatively bright color scheme of the earlier painting may indicate that it was not a winter scene.[274]
629

Top section shows irregular patches of light purple, gray, and pink, with small accents of dark green and blue. The middle area continues in lavender and gray with several brown and blue streaks running left to right. The lower section lightens to pale blue and lavender with a few touches of brown and red; a thin beige strip lines the right edge and a narrow beige band runs along the bottom.

Fig. 31.8


Detail of the lower right corner of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing green paint from an earlier painting stage at the edges. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29. 

Top area shows a pale purple band with patches of light gray, textured with small bumps. Along its lower edge runs a thin, wavy line of medium green dots from left to right. Below that is a wide tan section densely speckled with small brown spots, ending at a thin dark line near the bottom with a narrow golden-brown strip beneath it. A scale marker in the upper right reads 5.0 mm, indicating a very small field of view.
Monet 83.29 MIC 1
Top edge shows a thin horizontal band in muted gray and green tones. Below it, most of the scene is a broad expanse of irregular patches in white, pale blue, lavender, and soft pink that cover almost the entire frame. Toward the lower half and bottom edge, the patches become denser and darker, with scattered streaks of brown, green, and deep blue; no people or animals are visible.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.9

Photomicrograph of the bottom edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing green paint from an earlier painting stage. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

At the top, a 5.0 mm scale bar sits above a pale purple-gray area with fine cracks. Across the middle, a bright orange-red band is mottled with white patches and scattered small green spots, thinning toward the right. The lower third is tan-beige with many small dark brown dots and a rough, pebbled look, with a jagged boundary where orange-red flecks mix into it.
Monet 83.29 MIC 12
Top portion is solid black, occupying most of the frame. Along the bottom edge, a narrow horizontal strip shows mottled patches of light purple, pink, white, blue, with small touches of green and red. Across this colored strip, brown cursive writing runs left to right near the lower margin. The colored band is thin compared to the large black area.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.10

Photomicrograph of the bottom edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing red paint from an earlier painting stage. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29. 

Upper half shows a pale lavender area with fine horizontal ridges, with a slightly darker lavender vertical strip along the right edge. Lower half is a medium blue section with curved, thicker ridges that rise diagonally from left to right, with specks of lighter blue and off-white along its top boundary. Near the right edge where the colors meet, there is a small dark brown smudge, and the extreme right margin has a thin, uneven off-white strip.

Fig. 31.11


Detail of the right edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing pale-blue paint from an earlier painting stage. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

At the top, a narrow beige, ridged strip runs horizontally, with a black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm near the upper right. Below it is a thin, mottled dark brown band, followed by an irregular band of pale to medium blue. The lower portion is a broader area of light purple-gray with scattered blue flecks and fine linear marks, with a slightly uneven surface. The bands run left to right, with the blue band separating the dark brown region above from the light purple-gray region below.
Monet 83.29 MIC 22
Most of the frame is solid black. In the lower-left corner, a small rectangular picture shows a pale gray to light pink sky above a band of blue and purple waves along the bottom. The horizon runs horizontally a little above the bottom edge of that rectangle. No people or buildings are present.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.12

Photomicrograph of the top edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing pale-blue paint from an earlier painting stage. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

From top to bottom, a horizontal strip sits against a bright blue background. The upper layer is a thin, speckled light blue-white band with a small green patch near the upper right; beneath it is a thicker dark green band running left to right; the lowest layer is a pale off-white band that narrows toward the right. Edges are uneven and rounded, and a scale bar near the lower left reads 50 µm.
Monet 83.29 x1389_20x_UV_b
Right side holds a small rectangular picture against a large black background. Inside the picture, from top to bottom: a pale gray sky, a band of blue and purple hills, and a row of thin brown trees. The foreground shows a snow-dusted field with a large red-brown, cone-shaped haystack near the center bottom, appearing much larger than the trees and slightly right of center.
Sample Location

Fig. 31.13

Photomicrograph in UV light of a cross section of the paint and ground layers of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing the fluorescent, zinc-white-containing intermediate layer (top layer of sample) applied over green paint layers from an earlier painting stage. Original magnification: 200×. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Single grayscale scene framed by a thin dark border with small, evenly spaced white tick marks along all sides. From top left to bottom right, broad diagonal streaks of light to medium gray sweep across the center, with denser, brighter mottled patches toward the lower left and lower right. Near the left-center, faint short white lines intersect to form a loose lattice-like shape. No people, animals, or distinct objects are visible.
X-Ray
Pale gray sky spans the top, with a band of blue hills and a row of bare, dark trees across the middle. In the foreground, a large conical haystack near the center is mottled brown and reddish-brown. The ground is a wide, snow-speckled field in white, blue, and brown patches, with a few faint, small structures on the right in the middle distance.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 31.14

X-ray and natural-light images of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing diagonal brushstrokes associated with an intermediate layer used to block out the earlier composition. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29. Interactive image.

Top edge contains a horizontal scale bar labeled 5.0 mm. From top to bottom, a light purple-gray cracked surface sits above a band of bright red mottled with white patches and small green spots, followed by a beige, grainy area with dark speckles at the bottom. The boundaries between regions are irregular, with flakes and chips revealing stacked color layers, especially where the red meets the beige.
Monet 83.29 MIC 12
Top and middle sections are solid black. Along the bottom edge, a narrow horizontal band shows overlapping patches of light blue, lavender, pink, white, and small touches of red and green. Near the lower-left of this band, small brown cursive writing followed by numbers appears on the colored area.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.15

Photomicrograph of the bottom edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing a partial white layer that was applied over the red paint from the earlier composition. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29. 

Top area shows streaked light purple and dark gray with fine cracks; at the top right, a scale marking reads “2.0 mm.” Near the center, a small irregular oval patch of bright orange-red is bordered by bits of white and pale purple. The bottom third forms a horizontal band of deep blue with scattered light specks, meeting darker gray and purple above.
Monet 83.29 MIC 9
Top three-quarters of the frame is solid black. Along the bottom, a rectangular area shows a dark reddish-brown field across the upper part, with a narrow strip of blue and white along the right edge. The lower portion of this colored area is a mix of white, blue, pink, and green patches spread across the surface. Near the lower center-left, a small black outlined square highlights a light blue and gray patch.

Fig. 31.16

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing red paint from an earlier painting stage and white paint from an intermediate layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

At the top, a thin black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm runs left to right. Diagonal raised ridges extend from upper right to lower left, mostly pale purple and blue with many white patches. Near the center are several small green areas and a tiny yellow‑brown dot; the lower portion shows darker purple with scattered white flecks. The scale bar indicates these features are only a few millimeters across.
Monet 83.29 MIC 14
A large black area occupies roughly the left two-thirds of the frame. On the right, a tall rectangular section contains dense patches of light purple, blue, gray, and white. Near the top of this section is a darker horizontal band, while the lower area includes more brown, green, and reddish tones. A small black-outlined square appears slightly right of center within the colored section.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.17

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing green paint from an earlier painting stage and white paint from an intermediate layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Top edge shows a horizontal black scale bar labeled “5.0 mm.” Below it, a textured surface has irregular patches and streaks of pale purple and white, with medium green shapes scattered mostly across the middle and some small white flecks throughout. Toward the bottom, wider horizontal bands of blue and purple appear with narrow white breaks, and a few thin dark lines run vertically across the surface.
Monet 83.29 MIC 33
Most of the space is solid black. In the lower-left corner, a square section shows pale blue, white, and light purple across the left two-thirds, next to a vertical band of red-brown mixed with green and purple on the right. A small black rectangular outline appears slightly left of center within the pale area. This colored section occupies roughly one quarter of the total area.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.18

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing green paint from an earlier painting stage and white paint from an intermediate layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Across the top runs a scale bar labeled 5.0 mm, beneath which are purplish-blue and gray raised ridges with small dimples. In the center, an irregular bright orange patch is bordered by off-white and light purple areas; to the right, reddish-brown mixed with purple forms thicker, raised streaks. Along the bottom, a pale beige-gray area is crossed by a thin curved pale ridge, with a few fine dark hair-like lines scattered over the surface.
Monet 83.29 MIC 11
Top and most of the frame is solid black. Along the bottom edge, a narrow horizontal band shows patches and streaks of light blue, pale purple, pink, white, and touches of brown and green. Near the lower part of this band, a line of brown cursive text runs left to right, and slightly left of center a small black rectangle frames a tiny red plus sign.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.19

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing the open brushstrokes of the white intermediate layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Top edge includes a black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm. Below it, deep blue covers much of the upper and central area, with white and light blue streaks running diagonally from left to right and small, angular patches of green clustered in the middle and right. Toward the bottom, the colors become lighter with mixes of white, pale purple, and beige, and the surface shows raised ridges, grooves, and fine cracks.
Monet 83.29 MIC 16
At the top, a narrow horizontal band in muted gray-blue runs across. Below it, most of the view is rippling water in pale blue, lavender, and gray, with small touches of brown and green near the lower edge. Near the upper right, a small black-outlined square frames a tiny dark shape on the water; this shape is very small compared to the large expanse of water surrounding it.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.20

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing the open brushstrokes of the white intermediate layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

At top left, a 5.0 mm scale bar sits above a mostly light gray surface marked by thin, hairline fractures running diagonally. Near the center, an elongated, irregular crack contains small whitish to pale blue patches and a tiny black dot. Toward the bottom and right, the surface continues with branching thin cracks and scattered off‑white patches; colors are light gray, off‑white, pale blue, and a few darker specks.
Monet 83.29 MIC 20
A rectangular scene with a thin tan border appears in the lower-left of a large black background. Inside, the top three-quarters show a wide expanse of pale gray-pink with hints of light blue; a small black rectangular outline sits in the upper-left area of this space. Along the bottom, a band of deep to medium blue with touches of purple forms a wavy upper edge, spanning the width and taking up about one-quarter of the height.

Fig. 31.21

Photomicrograph of the sky in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing interlayer cleavage between the white intermediate layer and blue paint from an earlier painting stage. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

It is difficult to tell whether the earlier composition was also a wheat stack scene because the thick buildup of paint and the brushwork from the intermediate white layer make the X-ray difficult to read (fig. 31.22).[275] However, there are brushstrokes unrelated to the final composition to the left of the stack, in the area of the trees. Toward the center of the painting, additional brushwork suggests a sloping landmass running through the upper center of the composition. The infrared reflectogram shows a form in the area above the trees on the left side (fig. 31.23). At breaks in the upper, pale pinkish-gray paint of the sky and the intermediate white layer in the area of this pentimento, dark and bright green paint is visible (fig. 31.24, fig. 31.25). Further areas of green paint were also observed at localized areas of abrasion along the horizon line (fig. 31.26), and down into the distant hills (fig. 31.27). The green paint of the earlier composition suggests that this was some kind of landform, which could relate to the sloping diagonal observed in the X-ray (i.e., a hill in the upper left third of the painting sloping down through the middle of the canvas to the midright edge).
630

Rectangular grayscale surface with a thin dark border and small, evenly spaced tick marks along all four edges. From top to bottom, soft streaks of light to dark gray sweep mostly diagonally from the upper right toward the lower left. Slightly left of center is a small, faint triangular cluster of pale intersecting lines, while the lower half shows denser, mottled gray patches compared with the smoother, lighter areas toward the top and upper right.
X-Ray
At the top, a pale gray sky spans the scene; beneath it, a dark blue ridge of low hills runs left to right with a band of leafless, bluish trees in front. Centered in the foreground is a large cone-shaped haystack, mostly brown with gray and rust-red patches, occupying much of the lower half. The ground is a flat, snow-dusted field in mottled white, blue, and brown that stretches to the horizon, with small, faint structures near the right middle distance behind the trees.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 31.22

X-ray and natural-light images of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing changes made to the composition. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29. Interactive image.

Top to bottom: a light gray sky sits above a dark, uneven band of trees that stretches across the width. Centered in front of the trees is a large conical stack with rounded sides, occupying much of the middle and lower areas and appearing larger than the tree line behind it. The foreground is a flat field with irregular, patchy textures and a slightly darker area around the base of the stack, all in shades of gray.
Infrared Reflectogam (1.5–1.7 µm)
A pale gray sky spans the top, meeting a horizontal band of bluish hills and a thin line of leafless trees. In the center foreground, a large cone-shaped haystack in brown and gray sits on a field mottled with white, light blue, and brown patches. In the middle distance to the right, a few small, faint structures are visible beyond the field, and the haystack appears much larger than these background elements.
Natural Light
Top area to midsection shows light to medium gray tones with faint diagonal streaks moving toward the right. Near the center-left, a subtle triangular cluster of short, brighter white lines is visible, while the lower half has denser, swirling patches of light and dark gray. A thin dark border with evenly spaced small white tick marks frames all four sides.
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Infrared Reflectogram
Alt text for the image
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray

Fig. 31.23

Infrared reflectogram (Goodrich, 1.5–1.7 µm), and natural-light, and X-ray images of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing changes made to the composition. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29. Interactive image.

Close-up view of a light gray surface with irregular off-white patches and scattered pale to dark green specks, densest from upper-left through the center and thinning toward the right edge. At the top right, a thin black horizontal scale bar labeled 1.0 cm indicates that most specks are under 1 mm and the off-white patches span a few millimeters. Shallow grooves and small pits run in various directions, with more uniform gray areas toward the far right.
Monet 83.29 MIC 23
At the top, a wide expanse of pale gray sky fills the upper area, with a small black-outlined rectangle near the upper center-left. Across the middle, a thin horizontal band of blue hills runs from left to right. Below, most of the lower half is filled with dense, vertical tree shapes in blue, purple, and gray, with a steep brown-green slope rising diagonally along the right edge.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.24

Photomicrograph of the sky in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing green paint from an earlier painting stage. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

At the top right, a thin black line labeled “2.0 mm” runs horizontally as a scale. From left to right, a mottled, textured surface shows irregular patches of white and pale gray‑purple with scattered small green and blue spots. Fine hair‑like strands and tiny dark specks are visible across the surface, and faint vertical ridges run from top to bottom.
Monet 83.29 MIC 24
Top half shows a pale gray sky. Across the middle runs a low band of blue hills, with a dense stand of tall, thin trees in muted purples and blues below. In the lower right foreground, a steep brown and green slope cuts diagonally upward. A small black-outlined square sits in the upper left area of the sky.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.25

Photomicrograph of the sky in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing green paint from an earlier painting stage. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Top edge shows a 2.0 mm scale bar. From top to bottom, a rough pale purple surface is streaked with off-white areas, with several small, irregular green flecks scattered mostly in the center and lower portions. A darker purple area sits at the lower right, and tiny pits dot the surface; the green flecks appear well under 1 mm across when compared to the scale bar.
Monet 83.29 MIC 26
Pale gray sky fills the top, meeting a low ridge of blue and purple hills that runs left to right; a small black square sits slightly left of center on the ridge line. Below, a dense band of vertical bluish and purple trees stretches across the middle. In the foreground, a brown and green slope rises at the lower right, while a narrow light-gray strip lies along the lower left edge.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.26

Photomicrograph of the horizon in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing green paint from an earlier painting stage. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Top edge is mostly deep purple with a scale bar labeled 2.0 mm. Moving downward, the center forms an irregular white area sprinkled with small purple spots and tiny dark green specks. Bottom right shows a lighter zone crossed by a thin dark diagonal line, bordered by more purple with scattered white and green flecks, with small shiny highlights across the surface.
Monet 83.29 MIC 27
At the top, a pale gray sky fills more than half the frame. Across the upper middle, low blue hills run left to right, and below them a dense band of slender tree shapes in blue, purple, and brown occupies the center; a small black square outline sits slightly left of center over the trees. At the bottom, a mottled gray-blue ground spans the width, with a steep triangular slope in brown, rust, and green rising in the lower right corner.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.27

Photomicrograph of the hill in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing green paint from an earlier painting stage. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

The relative radio-opacity of the paint in the area of the stack suggests that the stack was not part of the original composition (fig. 31.28). The underlying paint layers were built up relatively densely underneath it; this includes bright green paint similar to that observed elsewhere in the foreground of the painting, which is visible microscopically through the open brushwork of the stack (fig. 31.29). The infrared reflectogram indicates that minor adjustments were made to the dimensions of the stack, particularly along the left and right edges where they were extended slightly over the field. Along the left edge of the stack, the intermediate white layer as well as some faint color strokes, is visible, suggesting that the snow-covered field was not worked up very far before the stack was expanded (fig. 31.30).
631

A large rectangular field is bordered by a thin dark edge with small, evenly spaced light tick marks around it. Inside, the surface is a mix of light, medium, and dark gray with soft streaks and cloudy patches that tend to angle from upper left to lower right; a faint darker vertical line runs near the center. From top to bottom, the upper area is pale with diffuse smudges, the middle has more mixed gray swirls, and the lower portion shows denser diagonal streaks with scattered bright flecks, especially toward the left.
X-Ray
Top section shows a pale gray, overcast sky. Across the middle, blue hills and a line of bare trees run left to right, with a large conical haystack centered in the foreground. The ground is a snowy field in whites and light blues with scattered patches of brown and green, and the haystack is reddish brown with bits of white near the top.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 31.28

X-ray and natural-light images of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing the density of the paint layers. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29. Interactive image.

At the top is a scale bar labeled 5.0 mm. From left to right, the surface shows raised ridges of color: deep purple and lavender on the left, a broad dark brown area in the center, and more purple toward the right, dotted with many white specks and faint thin lines. Near the center-right are a few small bright green patches, and the lower area blends purple, blue, and brown in lumpy clusters.
Monet 83.29 MIC 30
Top background holds a band of distant vertical tree shapes in blue and purple tones stretching across the width. Foreground right is a large conical haystack, heavily textured with brown, gray, white, and hints of red, taking up much of the right edge. Left and lower areas show a snow-covered field in pale white and blue that recedes toward the trees. The haystack appears much larger in scale than the distant trees.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.29

Photomicrograph of the wheat stack in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing green paint from an earlier painting stage. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

A broad mountain or hill fills the center foreground, its rounded peak near the upper middle. The surface shows mixed browns, reds, purples, and grays with lighter white streaks and small hints of green. Behind it, a band of distant blue ridges runs left to right across the upper third. A narrow strip of pale gray sky sits along the top edge.

Fig. 31.30


Detail of the wheat stack in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing bright green and red paint and a white intermediate layer through breaks in the brushwork. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

In the final composition, the paint application includes both wet-in-wet and wet-over-dry buildup of the layers. Through gaps in the upper paint layers, it appears that the stack was laid in with thinly applied strokes of dull reddish-brown and green-brown paint (fig. 31.31), and then built up with thicker, more textural strokes of deeper reds, purples, and greens. Lead white–rich strokes of pale blue and pale pink were used to indicate the snow-covered areas. The sky was built up wet-in-wet using undulating zigzag strokes in varying shades of gray with localized touches of pale blue, pink, and green added sporadically (fig. 31.32). The hills were reinforced along the upper edge, with long undulating strokes of blue paint, drawn along the horizon. These strokes pass over dry paint from the sky in some places, for example, near the center (fig. 31.33), with some final pinkish-gray strokes from the sky coming down over the hilltop, wet-in-wet. The dull purple trees were painted wet-in-wet over the sky and the hills in some places, and wet-over-dry in others. These observations indicate that the artist worked back and forth between the compositional elements to some extent. Some of the more fluid, thinly applied paint over the intermediate white layer (e.g., the dark blues and purples of the field and the hills and the dark browns, purples, and reds of the wheat stack) exhibits fine but extensive drying cracks, which appear to be caused by leaner, quicker-drying paint applied over slower-drying layers (fig. 31.34). Some of the final touches to the painting include the colorful strokes that were dragged across the peaks of the dried underlayers in the stack and the field, as well as finishing touches of pale-blue paint applied at the lower left and lower right corners, also over dry paint (fig. 31.35). The pale-blue paint was still wet when the painting was signed.
632

At the top, a thin black horizontal bar is labeled “1.0 cm.” Below it, the frame is filled with an uneven surface covered in irregular swirls and patches of dark purple and brown, mixed with medium and light purple, blue, and scattered small off‑white flecks. The streaks run mostly diagonally from upper left to lower right, with darker areas concentrated toward the center-left and lighter purples more present along the right edge.
Monet 83.29 MIC 31
Across the upper portion of the scene, a dense row of tall trees appears in blue and purple tones against a muted sky. The lower left shows snowy ground in light blue and white, while the right half is dominated by a large conical mound in brown, red-brown, gray, and touches of blue. A small black square overlay sits on the mound’s lower-middle side, and the mound is the largest element with the trees smaller and farther back.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.31

Photomicrograph of the wheat stack in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing a thin brown underlayer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Figs. 31.32–31.35

Top two-thirds shows a wide expanse of pale gray-lavender sky. Across the middle runs a long, low band of blue hills with gently rounded peaks from left to right. Along the bottom edge, a narrow strip of irregular dark purple and brown shapes stretches across, with small touches of blue.

Fig. 31.32


Detail of the sky in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing the buildup of the paint layers. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

At the top, a narrow band of pale gray sky lies above a wide strip of deep to medium blue distant hills stretching left to right. Below, a large central peak fills most of the lower half, colored in browns and rust with streaks of gray, white, and small touches of green. The blue hills sit behind the central peak, which is the largest element in the scene.

Fig. 31.33


Detail of the horizon in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing the blue paint overlapping the gray paint of the sky. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

At the top, a pale off-white sky sits above a deep blue mountain ridge stretching across the scene. Below, a dense band of tall, thin trees in bluish-gray and purple fills the middle area. On the left foreground, a steep reddish-brown hillside with lighter streaks slopes toward the center, and along the bottom a narrow strip of pale gray-blue ground runs horizontally.

Fig. 31.34


Detail of the trees in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing drying cracks in the upper paint layers. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

From top to bottom, irregular patches of light purple and gray fill the scene, with clusters of pink and small touches of dark blue and green near the upper right. The middle section mixes light purple with soft gray, brown, and bits of blue in larger swaths and small flecks. The lower portion turns paler lavender with a few brown bands, a thin light strip along the bottom edge, and a narrow tan border at the right; no distinct objects or figures are identifiable.

Fig. 31.35


Detail of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing final brushstrokes lightly dragged across the surface. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

There are areas of disturbed paint in a narrow band approximately 1.5–2 cm from the top edge. It appears that something was pressed against the painting and then pulled away from the surface while the paint was still wet (fig. 31.36); this could relate to an easel cleat or transporting device. A few strokes of impasto, just above and to the right of the M in the signature, and in the lower right corner, are flattened and seem to have a canvas or board texture impressed into the surface (fig. 31.37, fig. 31.38). This could also be related to transport or stacking of paintings while the paint was still soft.
633

Top edge shows a narrow horizontal band of mottled tan and beige with a slightly raised ridge. Below it, a broad area of pale lavender-gray fills the frame, marked by fine diagonal grooves and intersecting ridges. The lines run in multiple directions (upper left to lower right and lower left to upper right), with a few tiny darker specks scattered across the surface.

Fig. 31.36


Detail of the top edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing an area where something was pressed against the wet paint. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Top area shows a rough, mottled surface in dark brown and purple, with a scale bar at the top right labeled 5.0 mm. Near the center-left, a pale off-white and lavender curved ridge arcs downward, framing a darker purple recess that contains scattered small green speckles. Bottom area has wavy bands of purple and white, with a small yellow-brown patch near the lower right corner and a reddish-brown spot near the lower left. This is a single close view of a highly textured surface with raised ridges and grooves.
Monet 83.29 MIC 6
A large black area fills most of the frame, with a narrow horizontal band of color along the bottom. In this bottom band, irregular patches and ridges of light blue, lavender, white, pink, and brown extend left to right. Near the center of the band, a small black box outlines a pale gray, curved mark.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.37

Photomicrograph in raking light of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing the texture of something that was impressed into the soft paint. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

At the top, a thin black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm runs left to right. Below it, a textured surface in mostly purple and light blue shows, from left to right, a darker recessed band leading to a central irregular oval bump speckled with white, with smoother light areas on the right. Fine hairline cracks cross diagonally through the center, and along the bottom edge a curved raised ridge appears in purple with hints of pale pink; the central bump spans only a few millimeters across.
Monet 83.29 MIC 17
Left and top areas are solid black, covering most of the frame. On the right, a tall vertical rectangle shows dense, mottled patches of light purple, blue, white, and touches of pink and brown, with a thin gray‑green strip along its top edge. Near the lower right of this rectangle sits a small black-outlined square, and a short black horizontal bar appears just below it.
Detail Location

Fig. 31.38

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) showing the texture of something that was impressed into the soft paint. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Painting tools
Brushes including 0.5 cm and 1.0 cm width, flat ferrule (based on width and shape of brushstrokes). There are several brush hairs embedded in the paint layer.634

Palette
Analysis indicates the presence of the following pigments: lead white, zinc white,[276] cadmium yellow, chrome yellow, iron oxide, vermilion, red lake, viridian, emerald green, cobalt blue, and ultramarine blue.[277] UV fluorescence suggests the use of red lake throughout the landscape.[278]635

Binding media
Oil (estimated).[279]636

Surface Finish

Varnish layer/media
The painting was cleaned in 1997 and left unvarnished. The origin of the varnish layer that was removed is not known (see ). The painting has a relatively dry, matte surface in most areas, with some subtle variations in gloss depending on the qualities of the paint.637

Conservation History

A receipt of object report in the conservation file indicates that the work was submitted to the Art Institute in 1943 for “cleaning and repair.”[280] There is no documentation of what work was carried out.638

Prior to acquisition, the painting was mounted onto a one-sixteenth-inch metal panel composed of zinc and copper, backed with a second canvas, and mounted on a five-membered wood stretcher. The tacking margins were probably removed at this time. A synthetic varnish was probably also applied at this time.639

In 1997, the varnish was removed, and the painting was left unvarnished. Wax residues were removed mechanically. Minor inpainting was carried out.[281]640

Condition Summary

The painting is in good condition overall but suffers from past conservation treatment: the canvas has been mounted onto a one-sixteenth-inch solid-metal (zinc/copper) support; the metal support was then mounted onto a canvas and stretched onto the current stretcher. The original tacking margins were removed, probably at the time of this treatment. The painting does not appear to have been cut down in the process, as a border of unpainted ground is visible on all four sides. There is some flattening and moating of impasto, probably caused by the lining procedure. There are a few small losses in the upper paint layers, apparently the result of interlayer cleavage between the earlier painting campaign and the intermediate white layer applied before the final painting was executed. There is a general network of fine mechanical cracks, as well as localized areas of drying cracks throughout the painting. There is localized retouching in the sky and intermittently around the edges of the painting. The painting is currently unvarnished and has a generally matte appearance.

Kimberley Muir
641

Frame

Current frame (installed in 1995): The frame is not original to the painting. It is a reproduction of a Louis XIII convex frame with carved running acanthus leaves, plain hollow, and leaf-tip sight molding (Paul Mitchell Ltd., London 1995). The frame is water gilded over red bole on gesso. The hollow is burnished, while selective burnishing and a heavier rub were applied to the carved ornament. The frame is heavily toned with final washes of umber and gray with dark flecking. The carved jelutong molding is mitered and joined with angled dovetail splines. The molding from perimeter to interior, is cove side; convex face with carved running acanthus leaves; fillet with rocked recutting; hollow; fillet with rocked recutting; and ogee with carved leaf-tip sight (fig. 31.39).[282]
642

At the top, a pale gray sky stretches over low blue hills and a horizontal band of dark blue-brown trees. In the left foreground, a large conical haystack in dark brown with gray-white patches sits in a snow-covered field colored white, blue, and brown. Toward the right middle distance, a small light building and a few trees appear beyond the field. The haystack is the largest element, dominating the foreground, while the distant building and trees are much smaller.

Fig. 31.39


Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) in its current frame. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.29.

Previous frame (installed by 1980; removed in 1995): The work was previously housed in a stylized, American, mid-twentieth-century frame based on a Louis XV reverse ogee profile (fig. 31.40).
643

At the top, wall text reads “THE POTTER PALMER AND BERTHA HONORE PALMER GALLERY.” Across the middle, a white wall holds five medium rectangular framed paintings in a row; several adults stand in front of them, most facing the works, with a low rope barrier and a long bench centered in front, all shown in grayscale. In the foreground, an adult in a dark suit and tie stands at the left, and an older adult with short hair wearing a light jacket stands at the right, while other adults in the background wear jackets, skirts, and slacks.

Fig. 31.40


Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) in a previous frame, gallery installation. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

Kirk Vuillemot
644

Possibly sold by the artist to Isidore Montaignac, Paris, May 1899.[283]645

Acquired by Mrs. Potter (Bertha Honoré) Palmer, Chicago.[284]646

By descent from Mrs. Potter (Bertha Honoré) Palmer (died 1918), Chicago, to the Palmer family.[285]647

By descent in the Palmer family to Mrs. Arthur M. (Pauline Palmer) Wood, by Oct. 1951.[286]648

Acquired by Acquavella Galleries, New York, probably 1982.[287]649

Sold by Acquavella Galleries, New York, to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.
650

Possibly Paris, Galeries Durand-Ruel, Exposition d’oeuvres récentes de Claude Monet, May 1891, cat. 11, as Meule. (Hiver.).[288]651

Los Angeles County Museum of Art, A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, June 28–Sept. 16, 1984, cat. 106 (ill.); Art Institute of Chicago, Oct. 23, 1984–Jan. 6, 1985; Paris, Galeries Nationales, Grand Palais, as L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, Feb. 4–Apr. 22, 1985.[289]652

Tokyo, Seibu Museum of Art, Shikago bijutsukan inshō-ha ten [The Impressionist tradition: Masterpieces from the Art Institute of Chicago], Oct. 18–Dec. 17, 1985, cat. 57 (ill.); Fukuoka Art Museum, Jan. 5–Feb. 2, 1986; Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art, Mar. 4–Apr. 13, 1986.653

Boston, Museum of Fine Arts, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, Feb. 7–Apr. 29, 1990, cat. 27 (ill.); Art Institute of Chicago, May 19–Aug. 12, 1990; London, Royal Academy of Arts, Sept. 7–Dec. 9, 1990. (fig. 31.41)
654

At the top, a large rectangular skylight sits in a high white ceiling. Below, pale blue-gray walls and a light brown herringbone wood floor define a wide gallery with low metal barriers along the baseboards. Medium-sized framed paintings hang in rows on the left and right walls, and a central doorway leads to another room with additional framed works; tall glass-paneled openings are on the right wall, and no people are present.

Fig. 31.41


Installation of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) in Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, Art Institute of Chicago, May 19–Aug. 12, 1990. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago’s Dream, a World’s Treasure: The Art Institute of Chicago, 1893–1993, Nov. 1, 1993–Jan. 9, 1994, not in cat.[290]655

Art Institute of Chicago, Claude Monet, 1840–1926, July 22–Nov. 26, 1995, cat. 101 (ill.). (fig. 31.42)
656

A small corner gallery room with dark wood-paneled walls and a light brown herringbone floor, bordered by a low rope barrier near the walls. Five gold-framed artworks hang left to right at eye level; the second from the left is smaller than the others. Each picture shows a single large, dark, triangular mound against a distant horizon, with skies in varying colors such as pink, purple, and blue.

Fig. 31.42


Installation of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (1890/91) in Claude Monet, 1840–1926, Art Institute of Chicago, July 22–Nov. 26, 1995. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

Washington, D.C., Phillips Collection, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, Sept. 19, 1998–Jan. 3, 1999, cat. 24 (ill.); Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco at the Center for the Arts at Yerba Buena Gardens, Jan. 30–May 2, 1999; New York, Brooklyn Museum of Art, May 28–Aug. 29, 1999.657

Moscow, State Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Klod Mone [Claude Monet], Nov. 26, 2001–Feb. 21, 2002, cat. 30 (ill.); Saint Petersburg, State Hermitage Museum, May 1–15, 2002.658

Fort Worth, Tex., Kimbell Museum of Art, The Impressionists: Master Paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago, June 29–November 2, 2008, cat. 79 (ill.).
659

Possibly Galeries Durand-Ruel, Exposition d’oeuvres récentes de Claude Monet, exh. cat. (Galeries Durand-Ruel, 1891), p. 16, cat. 11.[291]660

Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, Peintures, 1887–1898 (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), pp. 38; 142; 143, cat. 1283 (ill.)661

Art Institute of Chicago, “Acquisitions,” Mosaic (July–Aug. 1983), p. 8 (ill.).662

Art Institute of Chicago, A Record of Sharing with Chicago’s Masterpiece, annual report supplement (Art Institute of Chicago, [1983]), p. 14 (ill.).663

Art Institute of Chicago, Art Institute of Chicago Annual Report 1982-83 (Art Institute of Chicago, 1983), pp. 5, fig. 5; 12.664

Robert Gordon and Andrew Forge, Monet (Abrams, 1983), pp. 161 (ill.), 163, 292.665

Andrea P. A. Belloli, ed., A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), p. 364.666

Richard R. Brettell, “The Fields of France,” in A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, ed. Andrea P. A. Belloli, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), pp. 246; 260–262; 265, no. 106 (ill.).667

Richard R. Brettell, “La champagne française,” in Réunion des Musées Nationaux, L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, exh. cat. (Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1985), pp. 261; 278; 282–291, no. 106 (ill.).668

Art Institute of Chicago, “A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape,” Mosaic (Nov.–Dec. 1984), p. 3 (ill.).669

Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 (Fall 1984), pp. 6; 7; 8, pl. 2; 12; 16–17, fig. 11 (ill.); 19; 21, n. 6, n. 17.670

“French Paintings Recently Acquired by the Art Institute of Chicago,” Burlington Magazine 76, 976 (July 1984), p. 464, fig. 89.671

Art Institute of Chicago, Seibu Museum of Art, Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art, and Fukuoka Art Museum, eds., Shikago bijutsukan inshō-ha ten [The Impressionist tradition: Masterpieces from the Art Institute of Chicago], trans. Akihiko Inoue, Hideo Namba, Heisaku Harada, and Yoko Maeda, exh. cat. (Nippon Television Network, 1985), pp. 116, cat. 57 (ill.); 117 (detail); 158 (ill.).672

Richard R. Brettell, Post-Impressionists (Art Institute of Chicago, 1987), pp. 35, 39 (ill.), 118.673

Richard Kendall, ed., Monet by Himself: Paintings, Drawings, Pastels, Letters, trans. Bridget Strevens Romer (Macdonald Orbis, 1989), pp. 202 (ill.); 320.674

Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), pp. 3; 77; 82; 91, pl. 30; 296, cat. 27; back cover (ill.).675

Anne Rorimer, “The Date Paintings of On Kawara,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 17, 2 (1991), p. 122, fig. 2.676

John Sallis, “Monet’s Grainstacks: Shades of Time,” Tema Celeste International Art Magazine 30 (Mar.–Apr. 1991), pp. 60 (ill.); 63; 67, n.13.677

Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Catalogue raisonné, vol. 5, Supplément aux peintures: Dessins; Pastels; Index (Wildenstein Institute, 1991), p. 47, cat. 1283.678

Art Institute of Chicago, Treasures of 19th- and 20th-Century Painting: The Art Institute of Chicago, with an introduction by James N. Wood (Art Institute of Chicago/Abbeville, 1993), p. 117 (ill.).679

William Mullen, “Art Institute Exhibit Hails Benefactors,” Chicago Tribune, Nov. 2, 1993, p. 6 (ill.).680

Art Institute of Chicago, The Art Institute of Chicago: The Essential Guide, selected by James N. Wood and Teri J. Edelstein, entries by Sally Ruth May (Art Institute of Chicago, 1993), p. 164 (ill.).681

John Andrew Fisher, Reflecting on Art (Mayfield, 1993), pp. 121, pl. 6; 200.682

Denis Thomas, Monet on Location (Regency House, 1994), p. 52 (ill.).683

Andrew Forge, Monet, Artists in Focus (Art Institute of Chicago, 1995), pp. 44; 91, pl. 20; 108.684

Charles F. Stuckey, with the assistance of Sophia Shaw, Claude Monet, 1840–1926, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago/Thames & Hudson, 1995), p. 122, cat. 101 (ill.).685

Stephan Koja, Claude Monet, trans. John Brownjohn, exh. cat. (Österreichische Galerie, Belvedere, Vienna/Prestel, 1996), p. 31 (ill.).686

Marietta S. Millet, Light Revealing Architecture (Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1996), p. 27, fig. 1–41c.[292]687

Daniel Wildenstein, Monet, or The Triumph of Impressionism, cat. rais., vol. 1 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 274–75, cat. 1283 (ill.); 275.688

Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1283 (ill.); 501.689

Charles S. Moffett, “Effet de neige: ‘Claude Monet and a Few Others . . . ,’” in Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson, 1998), pp. 20, 22.690

Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson, 1998), pp. 79; 211, cat. 24.691

Eliza E. Rathbone, “Road by Saint-Siméon Farm in Winter,” in Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson, 1998), p. 82.692

Katherine Rothkopf, “Rue Eugène Moussoir at Moret: Winter,” in Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson, 1998), p. 188.693

Katherine Rothkopf, “Stacks of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day); Stack of Wheat; Grainstacks: Snow Effect; Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect),” in Charles S. Moffett, Eliza E. Rathbone, Katherine Rothkopf, and Joel Isaacson, Impressionists in Winter: Effets de neige, exh. cat. (Phillips Collection/Philip Wilson, 1998), pp. 120; 122; 123, cat. 24 (ill.).694

John Sallis, Shades—Of Painting at the Limit (Indiana University Press, 1998), pl. 7; p. 48.695

Richard Shiff, “‘To move the eyes’: Impressionism, Symbolism and Well-Being, c. 1891,” in Impressions of French Modernity, ed. Richard Hobbs (Manchester University Press, 1998), pp. vii; 198, fig. 31.696

Malcolm Andrews, Landscape and Western Art, Oxford History of Art (Oxford University Press, 1999), pp. 193, fig. 107; 234.697

A. G. Kostenevich, Klod Mone [Claude Monet], exh. cat. (Khudozhnik i Kniga, 2001), pp. 82–83, cat. 30 (ill.).698

Norio Shimada and Keiko Sakagami, Kurōdo Mone meigashū: Hikari to kaze no kiseki [Claude Monet: 1881–1926], vol. 2 (Nihon Bijutsu Kyōiku Sentā, 2001), pp. 70, no. 198 (ill.); 189.699

Richard R. Brettell, From Monet to Van Gogh: A History of Impressionism, vol. 2 (Teaching Co., 2002), pp. 162, 167, 183.700

Petra ten-Doesschate Chu, Nineteenth-Century European Art (Prentice-Hall/Abrams, 2003), pp. 408, fig. 17-11; 409.701

Eleanor Dwight, ed., The Letters of Pauline Palmer: A Great Lady of Chicago’s First Family (M. T. Train/Scala, 2005), pp. 290 (ill.), 293, 326.702

Anna Gruetzner Robins, “‘Slabs of Pink and Lumps of Brown’: The Critical Reaction to the Exhibition of a Monet Grainstack Painting in Britain in 1893,” in Monet and French Landscape: Vétheuil and Normandy, ed. Frances Fowle (National Galleries of Scotland, 2006), pp. 159; 168, n. 10.703

Charles F. Stuckey, “The Predications and Implications of Monet’s Series,” in The Repeating Image: Multiples in French Painting from David to Matisse, ed. Eik Kahng, exh. cat. (Walters Art Museum/Yale University Press, 2007), pp. 85; 87–88, fig. 10.704

Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Impressionists: Master Paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago/Kimbell Art Museum, 2008), pp. 11 (ill.); 21 (ill.); 22; 103; 108; 156; 159, cat. 79 (ill.). Simultaneously published as Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Age of Impressionism at the Art Institute of Chicago (Art Institute of Chicago/Yale University Press, 2008), pp. 11 (ill.); 21 (ill.); 22; 103; 108; 156; 159, cat. 79 (ill.).[293]705

John Updike, Always Looking: Essays on Art, ed. Christopher Carduff (Knopf, 2012), pp. 74-75 (ill.).
706

Labels and Inscriptions

Undated

Sticker
Location: stretcher
Method: oval label with handwritten script
Content: P14 (fig. 31.43)
707

Top left shows a mitered corner of brown wood with visible grain. Near the center, a small white oval label with black writing reads “P14.” On the right side, two small drilled holes and rough wood shavings mark the surface, while the bottom-left edge reveals a narrow strip of a clear, reflective surface.

Fig. 31.43


Post-1980

Label
Location: frame
Method: printed label
Content: PAUL MITCHELL / LIMITED / Conservation of Paintings / Antique & Reproduction Frames / 99 NEW BOND STREET. LONDON. W1Y 9LF. TEL:071-493 8732 (fig. 31.44)
708

Top center is a cream rectangular label with a thin black border; large black text at the top reads “PAUL MITCHELL” with smaller “LIMITED” beneath. Mid-section reads “Conservation of Paintings” and “Antique & Reproduction Frames.” The bottom line lists “99 NEW BOND STREET . LONDON . W1Y 9LF. TEL:071-493 8732.” The label fills most of the frame on a brown wooden surface, with faint stains and a slightly curled lower-right corner.

Fig. 31.44


Number
Location: frame
Method: handwritten script
Content: 1983.29 (fig. 31.45)
709

Top area shows a flat tan surface; below it runs a darker brown board with visible grain. Along the top of the brown board, handwritten numbers read “1983.27” in dark ink. On the right side near the “27” are two adjacent round holes with rough edges, and smaller pinholes appear to the left. The lower-left corner forms a mitered right-angle joint.

Fig. 31.45


Label
Location: stretcher
Method: printed label with typewritten script and green-ink inventory stamp
Content: THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO / CHICAGO ILLINOIS 60603, U.S.A. / To MONET, Claude (French) / La Meule (Haystack) 1891 / 1983.29
Stamp: Inventory [. . .] 1984 (fig. 31.46)
710

At the top, a white rectangular strip of paper with black text rests on a brown surface and reads “THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO” with a smaller line below: “CHICAGO ILLINOIS 60603, U.S.A.” Below a thin double line, left-aligned text states “To MONET, Claude (French).” The next line reads “La Meule (Haystack) 1891,” and the line beneath shows “1983.29.” Faint teal stamps saying “Inventory” and “84” and light gray smudges appear around the right side and edges.

Fig. 31.46


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO / ARTIST: Claude Monet / TITLE: Stack of Wheat (1890–91) / MEDIUM: Oil on canvas / CREDIT: Restricted Gift of Searle Family Trust / ACC.#: 1983.29 (fig. 31.47)
711

Rectangular white label with black text on a light cream background. From top to bottom it reads: “THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO,” then “ARTIST: Claude Monet,” “TITLE: Stack of Wheat (1890–91),” “MEDIUM: Oil on canvas,” “CREDIT: Restricted Gift of Searle Family Trust,” and “ACC.#: 1983.29.” The label fills most of the frame, with each line left-aligned and on its own line.

Fig. 31.47


Label
Location: (previous?) frame; transcription in conservation file
Method: not documented
Content: The Minneapolis Institute of Arts / No. L82.224 / Lent / by / Acquavella / Gallery[294] (fig. 31.48)
712

Black text on a white background reads, top to bottom: “The Minneapolis Institute of Arts” and on the next line “No. L82.224.” Below, two columns show “Lent” on the left aligned with “Acquavella” on the right, and beneath that “by” on the left aligned with “Gallery” on the right. No people or images appear, only text.

Fig. 31.48


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with typewritten script
Content: Museum of Fine Arts / Boston, MA 02115 / W. 1283 GRAINSTACK / Art I., Chicago[295] (fig. 31.49)
713

Rectangular beige label with rounded corners on a light background. Top line in blue reads “Museum of Fine Arts Boston, MA 02115.” Middle section in black reads “W. 1283 GRAINSTACK,” with a small blue dot at the left and a thin blue underline. Bottom section in black reads “Art I., Chicago,” also with a blue dot at the left and a blue underline.

Fig. 31.49


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: MONET IN THE ’90s: / THE SERIES PAINTINGS / Museum of Fine Arts, Boston / Feb 7–Apr 29, 1990 / Art Institute of Chicago / May 19–Aug 12, 1990 / Royal Academy, London / Sep 7–Dec 9, 1990 / CAT# : 27 W: 1283 / TITLE : Grainstack / LENDER: The Art Institute of Chicago (fig. 31.50)
714

A rectangular beige card with rounded corners shows black typed text and scattered light brown spots. Top lines read “MONET IN THE ’90s: THE SERIES PAINTINGS,” followed by venues and dates: “Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Feb 7 - Apr 29, 1990,” “Art Institute of Chicago, May 19 - Aug 12, 1990,” and “Royal Academy, London, Sep 7 - Dec 9, 1990.” Near the bottom it states “CAT#: 27 W: 1283,” “TITLE: Grainstack,” and “LENDER: The Art Institute of Chicago.”

Fig. 31.50


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: The Art Institute of Chicago / “Claude Monet: 1840–1926” / July 14, 1995–November 26, 1995 / Catalog: 101 / Wheatstack / La Meule / The Art Institute of Chicago, Restricted gift of the / Searle Family Trust; Major Acquisitions Centennial / Endowment; through prior acquisitions of the Mr. and [sic] (fig. 31.51)
715

At the top, a rectangular white card with black text reads “The Art Institute of Chicago,” followed by “Claude Monet: 1840–1926” and the dates “July 14, 1995 – November 26, 1995.” The middle section lists “Catalog: 101,” then “Wheatstack,” and “La Meule.” The lower section contains credit lines: “The Art Institute of Chicago, Restricted gift of the Searle Family Trust; Major Acquisitions Centennial Endowment; through prior acquisitions of the Mr. and,” with the final words cut off on the right.

Fig. 31.51


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: The Phillips Collection 1600 21st Street NW Washington, DC 20009 / Impressionists in Winter (September 19, 1998–August 29, 1999) / Catalog # 24 / Claude Monet / Stack of Wheat, 1891 / Oil on canvas / 25 1/2 x 36 1/4in. / The Art Institute of Chicago, Restricted gift of the Searle Family / Trust; Major Acquisitions Centennial Endowment; through prior / acquisitions of the Mr. and Mrs. Martin A. Ryerson and Potter / Palmer collections; through prior bequest of Jerome Friedman, / [cut off but probably 1983.29] (fig. 31.52)
716

Top to bottom: a rectangular light-gray label with black text starts with “The Phillips Collection 1600 21st Street NW Washington, DC 20009,” followed by “Impressionists in Winter (September 19, 1998 – August 29, 1999).” The middle lines read “Catalog #24,” “Claude Monet,” “Stack of Wheat, 1891,” “Oil on canvas,” and “25 1/2 x 36 1/4 in.” The lower section gives the credit line: “The Art Institute of Chicago, Restricted gift of the Searle Family Trust; Major Acquisitions Centennial Endowment; through prior acquisitions of the Mr. and Mrs. Martin A. Ryerson and Potter Palmer collections; through prior bequest of Jerome Friedman,” with the final text cut off at the bottom right.

Fig. 31.52


Examination and Analysis Techniques

X-radiography

Westinghouse X-ray unit, scanned on Epson Expressions 10000XL flatbed scanner. Scans digitally composited by Robert G. Erdmann, University of Arizona.717

Infrared Reflectography

Goodrich/Sensors Unlimited SU640SDV-1.7RT with H filter (1.1–1.4 µm) and J filter (1.5–1.7 µm); Inframetrics Infracam with 1.5–1.73 µm filter; Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-Nite 1000B/2 mm filter (1.0–1.1 µm).718

Visible Light

Natural-light and raking-light overalls and macrophotography: Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-NiteCC1 filter.719

Ultraviolet

Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-NiteCC1 filter and Kodak Wratten 2E filter.720

High-Resolution Visible Light (and Ultraviolet)

Sinar P3 camera with Sinarback eVolution 75 H (PECA 918 UV/IR interference cut filter and Kodak Wratten 2E filter).721

Microscopy and Photomicrographs

Sample and cross-sectional analysis using a Zeiss Axioplan 2 research microscope equipped with reflected light/UV fluorescence and a Zeiss AxioCam MRc5 digital camera. Types of illumination used: darkfield, differential interference contrast (DIC), and UV. In situ photomicrographs with a Wild Heerbrugg M7A StereoZoom microscope fitted with an Olympus DP71 microscope digital camera722

X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy (XRF)

Several spots on the painting were analyzed in situ with a Bruker/Keymaster TRACeR III-V with rhodium tube.723

Polarized Light Microscopy (PLM)

Zeiss Universal research microscope.724

Scanning Electron Microscopy/Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (SEM/EDX)

Cross sections analyzed after carbon coating with a Hitachi S-3400N-II VP-SEM with an Oxford EDS and a Hitachi solid-state BSE detector. Analysis was performed at the Northwestern University Atomic and Nanoscale Characterization Experimental (NUANCE) Center, Electron Probe Instrumentation Center (EPIC) facility.725

Automated Thread Counting

Thread count and weave information were determined by Thread Count Automation Project software.[296]726

Image Registration Software

Overlay images registered using a novel image-based algorithm developed by Damon M. Conover (GW), John K. Delaney (GW, NGA), and Murray H. Loew (GW) of the George Washington University’s School of Engineering and Applied Science and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.[297]727

Image Inventory

The image inventory compiles records of all known images of the artwork on file in the Conservation Department, the Imaging Department, and the Department of Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture at the Art Institute of Chicago (fig. 31.53).
728

Fig. 31.53
Location/Negative # Format Purpose Date Lighting, Notes
E10336  CT   Unknown CT notes "PT"; may be pretreatment
E17562      Unknown Normal, detail
Conservation 8 × 10 B&W negative Pretreatment Jan. 25, 1983 Normal, overall
Conservation 8 × 10 B&W negative Pretreatment Jan. 25, 1983 Ultraviolet, overall
Conservation 35 mm color slide Pretreatment Feb. 1983 Normal, overall (6 total)
Conservation 35 mm color slide Pretreatment Feb. 1983 Normal, details (3 total)
C49644  8 × 10 B&W negative   1985 Date on verso
Conservation CT Loan/publication c. 1986 Normal, overall
E33391     Apr. 15, 1997 Normal, overall
132334 Digital Loan exam Nov. 2008 Annotated image E33391
Conservation Digital  OSCI Aug. 2, 2010 Normal, overall
Conservation Digital OSCI Aug. 2, 2010 Raking light, overall (2 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI Aug. 2, 2010 Ultraviolet, overall 
Conservation Digital OSCI Aug. 2, 2010 Infrared (Fuji, 1000B/2 mm filter), overall
Conservation Digital OSCI Aug. 2, 2010 Detail images of verso, labels (9 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI Aug. 2, 2010 X-ray films scanned/digitally composited, overall
Conservation Digital OSCI Aug. 3, 2010 Macro details (15 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI Aug. 6, 2010 Infrared (Inframetrics, 1.5–1.73µmfilter), overall
Conservation Digital OSCI Aug. 6 and 9, 2010 Photomicrographs of surface (34 total)
G39487 Digital OSCI Mar. 5, 2012 Normal, overall;compositeof G39938–G39957
G39938–G39957 Digital OSCI Mar. 5, 2012 Sections (20 total)
G39489 Digital OSCI Mar. 6, 2012 Normal, frame only
Conservation Digital OSCI Mar. 7, 2012 Infrared (Goodrich, 1.5–1.7µmfilter), overall
G39488 Digital OSCI July 2, 2012 Ultraviolet, overall

Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset), 1890/91 (Cat. 32)

Technical Summary

Claude Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) was painted on a pre-primed, no. 30 landscape (paysage) standard-size linen canvas. The ground consists of a single, off-white layer. A warp-thread match was detected with seven other Monet paintings from the Art Institute’s collection: The Petite Creuse River (cat. 25 [W1231], inv. 1922.432), Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (cat. 27 [W1269], inv. 1985.1103), Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (cat. 28 [W1270], inv. 1933.444), Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (cat. 29 [W1278], inv. 1922.431), Sandvika, Norway (cat. 34 [W1397], inv. 1961.790), Branch of the Seine near Giverny (Mist) (cat. 36 [W1475], inv. 1933.1156), and Water Lily Pond (cat. 37 [W1628], inv. 1933.441), suggesting that the fabric for these paintings came from the same bolt of material.[298] The artist worked from an initial lay-in, building up the final composition in a network of open brushstrokes that includes both wet-in-wet and wet-over-dry paint application. The painting is densely worked up and includes significant compositional changes: either the stack was moved from a more central placement to its final position on the left side of the painting, or possibly two overlapping stacks were included at an earlier stage of the composition. Alterations were also made to the position of the horizon. Two small areas of bright emerald green paint exposed at the surface of the painting—one near the top of the wheat stack, the other below the building at far right—indicate that the earlier composition incorporated some bright, more colorful hues. The artist appears to have wiped or scraped localized areas of the painting when the upper layers were still relatively soft, leading to tiny areas of abrasion and interlayer cleavage between upper and lower paint layers and exposing the underlying layers at the surface.[299]729

Multilayer Interactive Image Viewer

The multilayer interactive image viewer is designed to facilitate the viewer’s exploration and comparison of the technical images (fig. 32.1).[300]
730

Top third shows a pale yellow sky fading into light purple. Across the middle, a dark green and purple tree line runs left to right, with a large, cone-shaped red‑brown haystack near the center-left that dominates the scene. The foreground is a flat field covered in patchy tones of pink, blue, and lavender, with a couple of small, faint red‑brown rectangular forms along the middle-right.
Natural Light
Across the top, broad horizontal bands of light and dark gray run left to right, with a lighter band forming a horizon in the upper middle. In the center-left, a large cone-shaped mound is the dominant shape, with smaller thin vertical marks nearby on the left and lower, flatter terrain extending to the right. The foreground shows densely textured ground in mixed grays with scattered pale streaks, and a narrow frame with small tick marks encloses all four edges.
X-Ray
Top third shows a light gray sky with soft, uneven shading. A long, darker gray horizontal band spans the middle as the horizon. Center foreground features a large, cone-shaped mound in medium to dark gray, broad at the base and rising toward the middle of the scene. The surrounding ground is a wide field of light to medium grays with scattered darker patches and faint lines; no people or buildings are visible.
Infrared Reflectogram (1.0–1.1 µm)
Top third shows a light gray sky with uneven, soft streaks. Across the middle, a darker gray horizontal band suggests distant land, with a large, centered conical mound rising from the lower edge into this band; the mound is medium to dark gray and is the largest element. The lower third is a field of mixed light to dark gray, textured with short, irregular marks. No people, animals, or buildings are visible.
Infrared Reflectogram (1.5–1.7 µm)
Pale yellow fading to gray sky spans the top. A low, dark ridge runs horizontally across the middle, with a large, dark reddish-brown conical mound in front of it slightly left of center; this mound is the largest element, taking roughly a third of the height. The lower area is flat ground in muted bluish-gray and pinkish-brown tones with scattered lighter patches. No people or buildings are visible.
Raking Light
From top to bottom, a light gray, textured field is interrupted by a wide black vertical bar near the center. A thick black horizontal bar crosses the middle, creating a cross that divides the scene into four rectangular sections. Within each section, mottled patterns of white, light gray, and dark gray form streaks and clusters, with darker areas concentrated around the center and lower half.
Transmitted Infrared (1.0–1.1 µm)
At the top, a muted green-blue sky spans the width with a thin tan band just above the horizon. The middle features a dark, uneven horizontal band running edge to edge. In the foreground, a blue-gray field fills the lower half, dominated by a large dark brown-black conical mound slightly left of center that rises to about the mid-height of the scene.
Ultraviolet
Natural Light
Transmitted Infrared
X-Ray

Fig. 32.1

Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91). The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166. Interactive image.

Signature

Signed and dated: Claude Monet 91 (lower left, in light red paint[301]) (fig. 32.2). The signature and date were added when the underlying paint layers were already dry (fig. 32.3).
731

Top area shows uneven patches of pale purple, pink, and gray-blue on a rough-looking surface. Across the middle from left to right, red handwritten letters spell “Claude Monet 91,” stretching across most of the width. Bottom area continues the same mix of pale purple, pink, and blue tones, with no other distinct objects.

Fig. 32.2


Detail of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing the signature. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Upper area shows bluish-purple and lavender ridges with scattered dark red patches. From left to right across the middle, textured bands run diagonally, with small dark brown and red flecks over a light purple base; the bottom left has a broader maroon-red area with a thin greenish-brown edge. Toward the bottom right, the surface shifts to more bluish-purple with fewer red spots. A black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm sits in the lower right.
Monet 83.166 MIC 5
Top and middle areas are solid black. Along the bottom, a narrow horizontal strip shows a rough, multicolored surface in purple, blue, pink, and gray tones, with red cursive lettering that reads “Claude Monet 91” running left to right. Near the left-center of this strip, a small black rectangular outline frames part of a letter. No people or other objects are visible.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.3

Photomicrograph of the signature of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing wet-over-dry paint application. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Structure and Technique

Support

Canvas
Flax (commonly known as linen).[302]732

Standard format
The original dimensions of the painting were approximately 64 × 92 cm. This corresponds closely to a no. 30 landscape (paysage) standard-size canvas (65 × 92 cm).[303]733

Weave
Plain weave. Average thread count (standard deviation): 21.9V (0.7) x 23.6H (0.6) threads/cm; the horizontal threads were determined to correspond to the warp and the vertical threads to the weft.[304] A warp-thread match was determined with seven other Monet paintings: The Petite Creuse River (cat. 25 [W1231], inv. 1922.432), Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (cat. 27 [W1269], inv. 1985.1103), Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (cat. 28 [W1270], inv. 1933.444), Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (cat. 29 [W1278], inv. 1922.431), Sandvika, Norway (cat. 34 [W1397], inv. 1961.790), Branch of the Seine near Giverny (Mist) (cat. 36 [W1475], inv. 1933.1156), and Water Lily Pond (cat. 37 [W1628], inv. 1933.441).[305]734

Canvas characteristics
There is mild cusping along the left and right edges, slightly stronger cusping along the top edge, and more pronounced cusping along the bottom edge.735

Stretching
Current stretching: Dates to preacquisition lining (see Conservation History); tacks spaced 2.5–5 cm apart. Most of the original tack holes were reused when the canvas was restretched after lining, with additional tacks added in between (fig. 32.4). Along the left edge, there are seven old tack holes that do not correspond to the cusping. There are a few old tack holes, located at or close to the canvas edges (some torn or cut through), mainly seen on the right edge (fig. 32.5). Some additional pinholes, which pass through the canvas and into the stretcher, appear to be more recent. A separate set of tacks (underneath the original tacking margins) attaches the lining canvas tacking edges to the stretcher (i.e., the tacking edges were separated after lining and tacked down separately). The lining canvas tacks are visible in the X-ray, and the impression of the tack head is visible through the original tacking edge in places. The edges of the canvas sometimes turn over the back edge of the stretcher. Based on marks impressed in the canvas in a few places, it appears that canvas pliers were used to stretch the canvas at some point.736

Original stretching: The original tack holes are spaced 5–9 cm apart; as noted above, it appears that most of the original tack holes were reused when the painting was restretched after lining (see Conservation History). The original tack holes appear to correspond to the cusping pattern on all sides.
737

Top area shows a blurred light gray background. Across the middle, a horizontal strip of beige, coarse fabric with faint pink, purple, and yellow smudges is secured by three dark round tacks; the lower edge of the fabric is frayed with a narrow loose strip hanging down near the center. The bottom portion is a dark, nearly black space beneath the fabric edge.

Fig. 32.4


Detail of the bottom tacking edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91). The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Top area shows a blurred light gray background. Across the middle, a narrow horizontal strip of beige fabric wraps an edge and is secured by three small, evenly spaced, dark gray round tacks; the fabric has a few small holes and frayed threads. The bottom third is a solid black band.

Fig. 32.5


Detail of the right tacking edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing holes at the edge of the canvas. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Stretcher/strainer
Current stretcher: The current stretcher may be the original stretcher.[306] The stretcher is six-membered with vertical and horizontal crossbars, and keyable mortise and tenon joints; all keys (twelve) are present. Stretcher depth: Approximately 2 cm at outer edge (inner, nonbevelled edge is closer to 2.5 cm) (fig. 32.6).
738

Beige fabric is stretched across a rectangular brown frame with visible grain, seen from the side where the support slats are exposed. From top to bottom, a horizontal brown slat spans the middle and meets a vertical slat to form a cross, dividing the fabric into four large rectangles; small triangular blocks sit in each corner and small fasteners line the inner edges. Near the center join is a narrow strip, and slightly below it on the vertical slat are two small paper labels; the worn frame fills the scene.

Fig. 32.6


Image of the back of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing the stretcher. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Original stretcher: See above.739

Manufacturer’s/supplier’s marks
None observed in current examination or documented in previous examinations.740

Preparatory Layers

Sizing
Not determined (probably glue).[307]741

Ground application/texture
The ground extends to the edges of the top, left, and right tacking margins but stops short of the bottom edge (fig. 32.7). This suggests that the canvas was cut from a larger piece of primed fabric on the top, left, and right sides; the bottom edge probably corresponds to the edge of the larger roll of canvas that was attached to the frame during priming. The canvas was probably commercially primed. The ground consists of a single layer that ranges from approximately 10 to 60 µm in thickness (fig. 32.8).
742

At the top, a blurred light gray background sits above a narrow horizontal strip of beige, worn fabric. Across the middle, a brown band of fabric is held by two round dark fasteners, one left of center and one right of center, with small frayed areas along the lower edge. The bottom portion is mostly dark, forming a shadowed area beneath the fabric edge.

Fig. 32.7


Detail of the bottom tacking edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing unprimed canvas. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Across a dark gray background, a wavy, layered brown band runs horizontally near the center. From left to right within this band are three similarly sized dark brown circular areas, each surrounded by lighter brown, translucent layers; small irregular white patches sit along the band’s upper edge, especially near the left and right circles. The band spans most of the width, and the height of the band is roughly similar to the diameter of the circles. A scale bar at the bottom right reads 100 µm.
Monet 83.166 x1406_10x_dkfld_d
Top shows a pale yellow band of sky fading into light gray-lavender. A low, continuous ridge in green and purple runs across the middle. In the foreground, a large conical mound in reddish-brown sits slightly left of center, taking up much of the lower half, and the ground around it has small patches of blue, pink, and orange. The mound is the largest element, with the ridge behind it and the sky occupying the upper third.
Sample Location

Fig. 32.8

Photomicrograph of a cross section of the ground and canvas layers of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91). Original magnification: 100×. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Color
The ground is off-white with some dark particles visible under magnification (fig. 32.9).
743

Across the surface from top to bottom is a pale beige field dotted with many small brown oval marks, each enclosed by faint, irregular polygonal outlines. From left to right, the brown marks repeat with similar spacing, and thin cracks trace the pale outlines; the right side includes clusters of green with tiny dark blue speckles. A black scale bar labeled 1.0 mm appears at the bottom right, and the brown ovals are much smaller than this length.
Monet 83.166 MIC 2
Top section is pale gray and lavender, transitioning to a thin band of light yellow near the middle. Across the center, a soft strip of muted green and blue runs horizontally. The lower area is brown‑gray with vertical streaks, and a large reddish‑brown diagonal shape occupies the lower right. A small black rectangular mark sits on the left edge near the middle, and the picture appears in the lower-left of a larger black background.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.9

Photomicrograph of the left edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing the ground layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166. 

Materials/composition
Analysis indicates the presence of the following components: lead white, calcium carbonate (chalk), traces of iron oxide and bone black, silica, various silicates, and alumina.[308] Binder: Oil (estimated).744

Compositional Planning/Underdrawing/Painted Sketch

Extent/character
No underdrawing was observed with infrared reflectography (IRR) or microscopic examination.745

Paint Layer

Application/technique and artist’s revisions
The painting was heavily worked up as evidenced by its relatively dense appearance in the X-ray. This is largely due to significant areas of compositional change and reworking, which were revealed by the technical examination (fig. 32.10). A dense buildup of brushwork to the right of the stack indicates the earlier outline of a stack further to the right. This suggests that the stack in the final painting was initially painted in a more central position and was possibly wider or more squat than in the final painting. Similar radio-opaque brushstrokes are also visible on the left side of the final stack. It is difficult to say whether this brushwork is associated with the earlier composition or whether it simply represents an adjustment to the left edge of the final stack in the course of painting. Given the distance between the left and right extremes of this earlier brushwork, however, it is also possible that there could have been two large, overlapping stacks in the original composition. Some adjustments were also made to the horizon line on both the left and right sides of the stack (fig. 32.11). Dense brushstrokes both above and below the final horizon seem to indicate that, at earlier stages in the painting process, the height of the horizon was altered, possibly several times (fig. 32.12).
746

Top section shows a cloudy sky in mixed light and dark gray. Across the middle, a lighter horizontal band marks the horizon, with a large rounded mound centered slightly left. The foreground is rough, textured ground in varied grays with a few small vertical tufts on the left. A thin border with tiny tick marks runs along all four edges.

Fig. 32.10


X-ray of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing the dense buildup of the paint layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166. X-ray digitally composited by Robert G. Erdmann, University of Arizona.

Top area shows a cloudy sky in light and medium gray bands. In the middle, a large conical mound sits slightly left of center, larger than any other element, with darker gray tones; low, flat fields extend around it to the right and into the distance. Bottom area has uneven ground with streaks and patches of light and dark gray. The scene is entirely grayscale, with small tick marks along the outer edges and no people, animals, or buildings visible.
X-Ray
A dark vertical bar intersects a dark horizontal bar at the center, forming a cross that divides the scene into four rectangular sections. Top sections show light gray streaks and patches, while a darker, mottled gray band runs horizontally across the middle. Bottom sections are mostly dark gray to black with scattered lighter specks; edges fade to near black. Colors are only black, white, and gray.
Transmitted Infrared (1.0–1.1 µm)
At the top, a pale yellow band meets a gray‑purple sky. Across the middle, a dark green ridge runs left to right with faint rectangular buildings near the right side. In the foreground, a large cone-shaped haystack in reddish-brown sits slightly left of center on ground mottled with pink, blue, and lavender tones.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
Transmitted Infrared
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 32.11

X-ray, transmitted infrared (Fuji, 1.0–1.1 µm), and natural-light images of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing changes made to the composition. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166. Interactive image.

Shades of gray from white to black fill the scene. At the top, horizontal bands of light and dark gray span the width; in the center, a large cone-shaped mound in mid to dark gray dominates, slightly left of center. Across the lower third, dense, uneven gray textures extend left to right with a faint diagonal streak pointing toward the mound, and small rectangular marks create a border along all four edges.
X-Ray
At the top, a band of pale yellow sky shifts to lavender‑gray above a dark green ridge. In the middle, a large reddish‑brown, cone‑shaped haystack sits slightly left of center; to its right are two small, low red‑brown shapes with slanted tops, much smaller than the haystack. Across the foreground, the ground is mottled with blue, pink, and orange patches that surround the haystack and extend to the horizon.
Natural Light
Alt text for the image
X-Ray
Alt text for the image
Natural Light

Fig. 32.12

X-ray and natural-light images of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing changes made to the composition. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166. Interactive image.

In the execution of the final painting, the artist worked up the surface as a whole, using an open network of overlapping brushstrokes. The sky was laid in with a warm underlayer, which ranges in tone across the surface from pale orange-brown to off-white (fig. 32.13). Over this, more textural strokes of pale blue, green, pink, and yellow paint were applied, leaving both the underpainting and the ground layer visible in places, especially near the edges where the brushwork is more open (fig. 32.14). This underlayer does not always extend to the edges of the canvas; microscopically, it appears discontinuous in places, leaving the ground layer visible and suggesting that it was somewhat sketchy and open. The underpainting appears to have been dry when the sky was built up and the upper paint layers include both wet-in-wet and wet-over-dry paint application, indicating that the sky was carried out in more than one session. The yellow area, near the horizon, was built up with thicker strokes of paint. This was still wet in a few places when some of the strokes of green paint from the hilltops were dragged through it. In the foreground, the artist worked from dark to light, laying in the area beneath the field with dark reddish-brown (fig. 32.15, fig. 32.16), dark purple, and dull greenish-gray tones (fig. 32.17).[309] The upper pink, peach, and blue strokes of the field were applied in both wet-in-wet and wet-over-dry layering. Final strokes of warm orange-red and yellow tones were lightly dragged across the surface, such that the brushstrokes skip over the recesses of the underlying dry paint and accentuate its surface texture (fig. 32.18). The wheat stack and the hills and buildings behind consist of fairly continuous paint applications, making it difficult to see the underlying layers. An isolated stroke of bright emerald green impasto, near the upper-left edge of the stack and which is just exposed at the surface, suggests that some brighter, more colorful tones were used in the earlier stages of building up this area (fig. 32.19). Another small area of bright green paint from an underlying layer is visible in the area of the building farthest to the right (fig. 32.20, fig. 32.21). The buildings in this area were articulated by just a few broad brushstrokes; the only architectural detail being the very fine lines of dark green paint used to delineate the eaves of the building at far right and the pale gray highlight on the edge of its roof (fig. 32.21, fig. 32.22).
747

From top left to bottom right, a rough surface is covered with tightly packed diagonal ridges and grooves that run from the lower left toward the upper right. Colors vary in patches of gray, blue-gray, tan, and brown, with tiny bright specks scattered throughout. A black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm sits in the lower right.
Monet 83.166 MIC 15
Most of the frame is solid black, with a smaller rectangular landscape in the bottom-left corner. Within that landscape, the top area shows a light sky shifting from pale gray and lavender to a band of light yellow near the horizon. Below the horizon, low hills in muted green, blue‑gray, and purple stretch from left to right, with a reddish‑brown slope at the far left edge. A small black outlined rectangle sits in the sky area slightly right of center within the landscape; no people or text are present.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.13

Photomicrograph of the sky in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing a pale-brown underlayer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Top area shows a wide sky in pale gray with hints of lavender, pink, and light yellow. Near the middle, a thin horizon line of low green hills stretches left to right. Bottom area contains muted gray-green ground, with a reddish-brown mound or slope at the lower right.

Fig. 32.14


Detail of the sky in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing the buildup of the paint layers. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166. Interactive image.

Top to bottom, raised purple-blue patches and ridges lie over a dark reddish-brown surface, with most ridges slanting from upper left to lower right. From left to right, the purple-blue areas appear as thinner streaks on the left and become thicker and more continuous toward the right, with glossy highlights and gaps showing the brown beneath. Tiny orange-red specks and fine dark lines are visible between the ridges. A black scale bar labeled 2.0 mm sits along the lower left edge.
Monet 83.166 MIC 8
Top and left areas are solid black. In the bottom-right corner, a small horizontal rectangle shows a close-up of a painted surface with layered brushstrokes in blue, purple, and pink, and red cursive writing that reads “Claude Monet” followed by “91.” The inset sits along the lower edge near the right side and is much smaller than the surrounding black area.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.15

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing a dark-brown underlayer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166. 

At the top left, a scale bar labeled 5.0 mm is visible. From top to middle, swirled bands of pale purple and pink fill the area, with fine hairline cracks and scattered tiny dark specks. Moving downward, the surface shows shallow ridges with small pits, transitioning into a horizontal band along the bottom that is mottled beige and brown with a grainy, dotted texture. Near the lower left edge, small patches of orange and red appear within the mottled band.
Monet 83.166 MIC 28
Top three-quarters of the frame are solid black. The bottom quarter contains a rectangular close-up of a mottled surface with pale blue, lavender, pink, tan, and small patches of darker blue and green. Along the lower edge of this colored area, red handwritten text runs left to right and reads “Claude Monet 91.” A small black square sits near the bottom-left edge of the colored area.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.16

Photomicrograph of the bottom edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing a brown underlayer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Top area shows a textured surface with light purple and gray ridges running diagonally. Toward the right, a thicker patch of medium purple sits raised above thinner pale purple streaks, with darker gray showing in small gaps between them. Bottom area continues the pale purple and gray ridges, and a black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm runs along the lower edge.
Monet 83.166 MIC 9
Top and left areas are solid black, occupying most of the frame. In the bottom-right, a small rectangular section shows horizontal areas of color: a reddish-brown band at the top transitioning to blue, gray, and pale purple with touches of green toward the lower edge. Near the lower center of this colored section, a small black-outlined square frames a light gray patch.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.17

Photomicrograph of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing a greenish-gray underlayer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Broad, irregular patches of color fill the frame, mostly soft pink and peach with lavender-gray and pale blue scattered throughout. From top to middle, pink mixes with muted gray-lavender and small touches of dull yellow in uneven patches. Near the bottom, the colors shift cooler with more lavender and blue bands, and a thin beige strip runs along the far right edge.

Fig. 32.18


Detail of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing orange brushstrokes lightly dragged over the surface. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Top left to bottom right, a textured surface shows broad areas of dark maroon and brown. Near the center, an oval patch of light green contains irregular red and brown spots and is bordered by darker maroon and orange. Fine cracks and thin dark lines run diagonally across the surface, with tiny pits and specks visible. A scale bar at the bottom right is labeled 2.0 mm for size reference.
Monet 83.166 MIC 50
Top section shows a wide expanse of pale gray and lavender that shifts to soft yellow near the center, with a thin, uneven band of muted green running left to right beneath it. The lower half is mostly brownish-gray, and at the bottom right a reddish-brown triangular slope angles upward. A small black square sits near the lower right within the colored area. The colored area occupies the left side, while a large solid black field fills the right half.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.19

Photomicrograph of the wheat stack in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing a bright-green underlayer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Top area shows a rough, mottled surface in brown and purple tones. Near the center, a thin, curved streak of bright green runs diagonally from lower left toward upper right, with small lighter green spots along it. Surrounding areas are uneven with ridges and pits in tan, brown, and gray. A scale bar at the bottom right reads 5.0 mm, indicating a very small field of view.
Monet 83.166 MIC 14
Top third shows a broad band of muted gray, purple, and green. Left side features a large reddish-brown slope that fills the lower-left corner, meeting a wide, flat area across the bottom in pale pink, peach, and light gray with small white and blue streaks. In the middle-right, a few low, horizontal forms in dull red-brown appear against the background, and a tiny dark triangular mark is enclosed by a small black rectangle near the right-center.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.20

Photomicrograph of a building in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing a bright-green underlayer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Top area shows a mottled mix of gray, purple, and muted green. The center holds a wide reddish-brown area with faint darker lines and an indistinct darker triangular shape to the left, blending on the right into patches of yellow, green, and brown. Along the bottom runs a pinkish-red band with small streaks of light blue and gray near the lower edge.

Fig. 32.21


Detail of a building in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing the broad brushstrokes. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Top right shows a small horizontal scale labeled “5.0 mm.” From top to middle, pale gray-green tones shift into a broad area of pink and peach with lighter whitish streaks and a diagonal line of darker green spots extending from near the top center toward the right middle. The lower area is predominantly orange-brown with patches of purple and scattered small white flecks. With the scale present, most visible spots and color patches are within a few millimeters across.
Monet 83.166 MIC 43
Top and right areas are solid black, covering most of the frame, with a smaller colored panel in the lower-left. Within that panel, from top to bottom, a gray‑purple zone sits above a horizontal brown band; a sloped reddish‑brown shape runs along the left edge; and a lighter area in pinks and blues fills the bottom. A small black‑outlined square appears near the right side of the colored panel, slightly above center.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.22

Photomicrograph of a building in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing brushstrokes that define the eaves of the roof. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

It seems that the artist rubbed or scraped over areas of the painting when the upper paint layers were set up but still relatively soft, leading to tiny areas of abrasion and interlayer cleavage that expose the lower layers at the surface of the painting (fig. 32.23). There is a band of short, vertical marks in the paint, near the top edge, approximately 1 cm wide, which occurred when the paint was still wet. This could be the result of contact from an easel cleat or some kind of transporting device. In some areas, final strokes from the sky pass over these marks (fig. 32.24), indicating that they occurred while the artist was still working on the painting. Several light gouges were observed throughout the paint surface. These probably occurred as a result of handling when the paint was still soft. There are several brush hairs embedded in the paint surface, as well as tiny bubble holes where the paint was more thickly applied or more heavily worked. Two unidentified inclusions in the paint layer were observed near the bottom right edge (fig. 32.25, fig. 32.26). These ridged, reddish-brown, shell-shaped objects measure approximately 2 mm in diameter and are probably composed of organic material (they appear relatively radio transparent in the X-ray). They could be plant-related materials that were incorporated into the paint layer when it was wet. There is some flattened impasto around the edges of the painting, presumably due to framing while the paint was still soft.
748

Upper portion shows pale pink and light gray streaks running diagonally from upper left to lower right, with patches of lavender and a thin cream band near the top right. The center is denser with ridges and grooves in pink, mauve, and reddish orange, crossed by thin gray lines. Lower portion continues the diagonal texture with muted purple, brown, and hints of blue. No recognizable figures, text, or distinct objects are present.

Fig. 32.23


Detail of the field in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing an area where the artist wiped or scraped the soft paint. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Top edge shows a black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm. Across the surface from top to bottom, shallow grooves and scratches run mostly diagonally from upper left to lower right, intersecting at various angles. Colors range from light gray to pale purple and pink, with faint blue streaks; raised ridges and broader bands span a few millimeters, overlapping throughout.
Monet 83.166 MIC 31
Top area shows a pale lavender and light gray sky, with a soft yellow band near the horizon. Below, a long low ridge of blue-gray and green hills stretches left to right, with a nearer reddish-brown slope in the lower left corner. The sky occupies most of the scene, and the hills form a thinner band along the bottom. A small black outlined rectangle appears near the upper right portion of the sky.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.24

Photomicrograph of the top edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing vertical marks that were made when the paint was still soft. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Across the top edge runs a narrow band of orange over a mostly purple and gray textured surface. Near the center, a small recessed spot contains two tiny brown, ridged pieces, with pale pink streaks to the right. In the lower-left corner, a scale label reads 5.0 mm.
Monet 83.166 MIC 12
- Upper and left areas are solid black. - In the lower-right quadrant, a small square section shows mottled patches of pink, peach, light blue, lavender, tan, and pale gray, with a darker reddish band along the left edge of this section. - A tiny black-outlined square sits near the bottom-right corner of the colored section.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.25

Photomicrograph of the bottom edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing unidentified inclusions in the paint layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

From top to bottom, a rough gray and purple surface fills the frame. Near the center-left and lower-right are two small, shiny brown, fan-shaped fragments with fine ridges; the left piece angles down-left, and the right piece angles down-right and appears slightly larger. At the bottom left, a black scale bar labeled 1.0 mm indicates the objects are on the millimeter scale.
Monet 83.166 MIC 13
Mostly black background covers the top and left, with a small square picture anchored in the bottom-right corner. Inside the square, the top area is muted pink and gray; the middle blends light pink, pale blue, and yellow; and the bottom continues with soft orange, blue, and pink patches, with a darker reddish-brown vertical band along the square’s left edge. No distinct objects are visible within the colored square, and a tiny black box sits just outside it at the extreme bottom-right.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.26

Photomicrograph of the bottom edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing unidentified inclusions in the paint layer. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Painting tools
Brushes including 1.0 cm, flat ferrule (based on width and shape of brushstrokes).749

Palette
XRF analysis indicates the presence of the following pigments: lead white, cobalt blue, viridian, emerald green, cadmium yellow, one or more iron oxide pigments, vermilion.[310] UV fluorescence of several pale-pink paint strokes suggests the use of red lake throughout the landscape.[311] Restoration fills and retouching appear to contain titanium white and zinc white (not present in the original paint layers), and calcium compounds at higher levels than those detected in the original paint.[312] Naples yellow and strontium yellow also appear to be associated exclusively with areas of retouching.[313]750

Binding media
Oil (estimated).[314]751

Surface Finish

Varnish layer/media
The painting was cleaned in 1996 and left unvarnished (see Conservation History). The paint surface has a relatively dry, matte quality in most areas, with some subtle variations in surface sheen depending on the qualities of the paint application.
752

Conservation History

The painting was lined with an aqueous adhesive at some point before it was acquired in 1983. The lining, which may have preserved the original stretcher, appears to date to the early twentieth century, based on its aged appearance. The original tacking margins were preserved; those of the lining canvas were trimmed, disguising the presence of the lining canvas at the edges. The presence of a synthetic varnish at the time of acquisition suggests that other treatments (i.e., varnish removal and revarnishing) were carried out before the painting was acquired.753

There are microscopic traces of retouching in localized areas consisting of a coarse, granular, greenish-gray fill material. This fill material is often associated with traces of retouching that appear to have been mostly removed in previous cleaning. Apart from a few actual small damages to the paint layer, as seen in the area of thesignature and date, for example (fig. 32.27),[315] most of these fills seem to be unrelated to actual paint loss. This is evident throughout the field area, where the fill material covers tiny areas of the dark brown underpainting exposed at breaks in the upper brushwork (fig. 32.28). The filling and retouching was probably done either for aesthetic reasons (i.e., to reduce the appearance of the brown underpainting) or because these areas were interpreted as losses in the upper paint layers (i.e., exposing more of the underpainting than the artist originally intended to be seen). To the right of the stack, where there are numerous small areas of exposed brown underpainting, there is a relatively concentrated area of the fill material. Some of these areas may exhibit tiny flake losses in the upper paint layers, but for the most part the fill was applied in areas where the dark brown underlayer was originally left more visible. In the background of the composition, there is a campaign of more broadly applied (and perhaps inventive) retouching that appears to cover well-preserved original paint.[316] The retouching is very thinly applied using a lean, matte paint, which, microscopically, has a granular appearance. It is visible in the lighter strokes on the roof of the building farthest to the right, as well as in the area in front of the building (fig. 32.29) and in the vertical, linear “trees” to the right of the stack. In this area, the retouching is slightly glossier but still consists of thin, dilute paint with coarse particles.[317] In the yellow area of the sky, near the middle of the horizon, residues of pale yellow retouching are visible microscopically (fig. 32.30). It is possible that there was some abrasion in this area,but this seems to be related to the artist’s wiping or scraping technique (see Application/technique) rather than the result of overcleaning. In general, the original paint layer is intact underneath. XRF analysis indicated the presence of titanium white in all of the areas of restoration analyzed, which would date the restoration to some time after 1920 (see Palette).[318] The retouching is not visually disturbing and is for the most part visible only under magnification.754

Top area shows mottled lavender and purple with a rough, bumpy texture. Across the middle, a rusty red horizontal band runs left to right, intersected near the center by a thin dark gray vertical line; small darker specks appear around it. Lower area shifts to deeper blue‑purple with scattered pits and shiny highlights, with some brownish patches near the edges. A black scale bar labeled “5.0 mm” appears in the bottom right.
Monet 83.166 MIC 16
Top area is solid black, taking up most of the frame. Along the bottom, a narrow band shows a mottled surface in muted pink, purple, blue, and gray. Red cursive writing runs left to right across this band, ending with the numerals “91,” and a small black square outlines the final digit near the lower-right side. No people are present.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.27

Photomicrograph of the signature in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing a small area of restoration. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Left and center show a rough, uneven surface in pink, peach, lavender, and dark red-brown, with scattered gray-green clumps and small pits. Along the right edge runs a vertical beige strip covered with evenly spaced small round dimples, forming a clear border with the colored area. A black scale bar labeled 5.0 mm appears at the bottom right.
Monet 83.166 MIC 29
At the top, a wide rectangular area fills most of the upper half, showing mottled pastel colors—pink, peach, light blue, lavender, and soft yellow—spread in irregular patches left to right. Along the left edge of this colored field is a narrow, darker brownish strip, and near the right edge there is a small black rectangle overlapping it. The lower half of the overall view is solid black, with thin black margins around the colored area.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.28

Photomicrograph of the edge of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing an old restoration fill. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Granular, mottled surface fills the frame in shades of reddish-brown, pink, gray, and purple. From the top left toward the bottom center, dark green to nearly black streaks cut across, with scattered tiny white flecks and small orange and black specks throughout; the right side is lighter gray-purple with fewer dark streaks. A 1.0 mm scale bar at the top right shows that the visible particles and streaks are smaller than a millimeter.
Monet 83.166 MIC 46
Top and right areas are solid black, while the lower-left quadrant contains a rectangular scene. Within that scene, a reddish-brown sloped landform runs down the left side, a wide band of light pink-gray water covers the lower portion, and a gray-lavender sky fills the upper area with soft patches of green and purple. Near the right side of the scene, slightly above the waterline, a small black-outlined square sits over a gray patch. Colors are muted browns, grays, purples, and pinks, with the landform large, the water band wide, and the square small.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.29

Photomicrograph of a building in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing traces of old retouching. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166

Across a tan background, irregular pale yellow patches and short streaks are spread left to right, with fine dark specks throughout. From the lower left toward the center and upper right, two very thin, dark strands cross over the surface; the middle and lower areas continue the mottled yellow-on-tan pattern. A scale bar in the upper right labeled 2.0 mm indicates the features and strands are millimeter-sized.
Monet 83.166 MIC 39
Top and right areas are solid black. Bottom-left quarter shows a landscape: a high, pale sky shifting from gray and light purple to soft yellow near the horizon, above low hills in blue-gray, green, and purple, with a reddish-brown slope at the far left edge. Near the left-center horizon, a tiny black square sits on the ridge line.
Detail Location

Fig. 32.30

Photomicrograph of the sky in Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) showing traces of old retouching. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

In 1996, a synthetic varnish layer was removed. This revealed old blanched varnish residues in the interstices of the impasto in the stack and in the hills in the center of the composition, which were removed with solvent. The earlier restorations were not removed.[319]
755

Condition Summary

The work is in good condition. The canvas is lined with an aqueous adhesive and stretched taut with no planar deformations. The original tacking margins are intact, and the work appears to retain its original stretcher. The paint layer is secure. In places, the impasto is slightly flattened and moated, likely as a result of the lining process. There are small areas of damage and paint loss around the signature and date and in a few places along the bottom edge. These areas were restored (probably at an early date) using a generic coarse, greenish-gray fill material. In general, the retouching, which remains most visibly in the signature (cross of t) and date (top of 1), appears to have been mostly removed, probably in subsequent cleanings, with only traces visible in some areas under the microscope. Additional localized areas of the same fill (with only traces of retouching) are visible microscopically throughout the foreground. These are unrelated to damage and appear to have been applied to block out areas of the dark brown underpainting that had originally been left visible through breaks in the brushwork. A more liberal campaign of retouching over well-preserved original paint appears to have been carried out in the area of the buildings, hills, and sky on the right side of the stack. The retouching paint is thinly applied and appears granular, lean, and matte. The inpainting of a loss near the right side of the group of hills, just above the buildings, appears somewhat mismatched. There is a general network of light, mechanical cracks, with localized areas of drying cracks within the stack. Gold residues from the frame are present along the top and bottom edges, and there are some accretions in the upper-right corner of the painting. Yellowed varnish residues are visible in the recesses of the paint texture. The work is currently unvarnished and has a dry, matte surface with subtle variations in gloss depending on the qualities of the paint.756


Kimberley Muir757

Frame

Current frame (installed in 1995): The frame is not original to the painting. It is a reproduction of a Louis XIII convex frame with carved alternating acanthus and stylized leaves, plain hollow, and continuous ribbon bordered by a leaf-tip sight molding (Paul Mitchell Ltd., London 1995). The frame is water gilded over red bole on gesso. The hollow is burnished, with selective burnishing and a heavier rub on the carved ornament. The toning is heavy with final washes of umber and gray with dark flecking. The carved jelutong molding is mitered and joined with angled dovetail splines. The molding from perimeter to interior, is fillet; ogee cyma recta side; convex face with carved alternating acanthus and stylized leaves; hollow; torus carved with continuous ribbon; and cove with carved leaf-tip sight molding (fig. 32.31).[320]
758

A large reddish-brown conical haystack sits slightly left of center, filling much of the lower half. Behind it, a dark green and purple tree line spans the width across the middle. Above, the sky shifts from pale yellow near the horizon to light blue and lavender higher up. In the foreground, the ground shows mottled patches of blue, pink, and white, with the haystack the largest form relative to the distant trees.

Fig. 32.31


Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) in its current frame. The Art Institute of Chicago, 1983.166.

Previous frame (installed by 1983; removed in 1995): The work was previously housed in a reproduction Louis XV frame, gilt, with swept sides and foliate rocaille cartouches with fleur-de-lis centers.[321]

Kirk Vuillemot
759

Possibly sold by the artist to Hamman, Paris, as agent for Knoedler and Company, New York, Sept. 1891.[322]760

Sold at the Knoedler, New York, sale, Chickering Hall, New York, Apr. 11, 1893, lot 77, to Durand-Ruel, New York, and Boussod, Valadon et Cie., Paris, in half-shares, for 6,000 francs.[323] 761

Half share sold by Durand-Ruel, New York, to Durand-Ruel, Paris, Sept. 30, 1899 or Nov. 13, 1899.[324]762

Half share sold by Durand-Ruel, Paris, to Boussod, Valadon et Cie., Paris, May 27, 1903.[325]763

Acquired by Rosenberg, Paris, 1903.[326]764

Sold by Rosenberg, Paris, to Durand-Ruel, Paris, Jan. 11, 1908.[327]765

Sold by Durand-Ruel, Paris, to Durand-Ruel, New York, Nov. 11, 1915 or Dec. 9, 1915.[328]766

Sold by Durand-Ruel, New York, to André Weil, Paris, Jan. 9, 1948.[329]767

Acquired by Wildenstein, New York and Paris, by 1982.[330]768

Sold by Wildenstein, New York and Paris, to Mrs. Mercedes Eraso de Rodríguez Landaeta, Caracas, Venezuela, by 1982.[331]769

Acquired by Rachel Adler Fine Art, New York, by Aug. 1982.[332]770

Sold by Rachel Adler Fine Art, New York, to James Goodman Gallery, New York, Aug. 1982.[333]771

Sold by James Goodman Gallery, New York, to Stephen Hahn Gallery, New York, Feb. 7, 1983.[334]772

Half share sold by Stephen Hahn Gallery, New York, to Acquavella Galleries, New York, Feb. 7, 1983.[335]773

Sold by Acquavella Galleries, New York, to Mr. Daniel C. Searle, Winnetka, Ill., Feb. 7, 1983.[336]774

Given by Mr. and Mrs. Daniel C. Searle, Winnetka, Ill., to the Art Institute of Chicago, beginning in 1983.[337]
775

Possibly Paris, Galeries Durand-Ruel, Exposition d’oeuvres récentes de Claude Monet, May 1891, cat. 12, as Meule. (Fin du jour.).[338]776

New York, Fine Arts Society Building, Loan Exhibition, Feb. 1893, cat. 41, as The Haystack —Thaw. Lent by Mr. M. Knoedler.777

New York, Durand-Ruel Galleries, Exposition of Forty Paintings by Claude Monet, Jan. 12–27, 1895, cat. 44, as “Meule—Dégel—Soleil couchant.” 1891.[339]778

Boston, St. Botolph Club, Exhibition of Paintings by Claude Monet, Feb. 4–16, 1895, cat. 11, as Meule. Le Degel. Soleil couchant. 1891.[340]779

Munich, Kunstausstellungsgebäude, Internationalen Kunst-Ausstellung: Secession, 1900, cat. 195, as Heuschober. Untergehende Sonne.[341]780

Berlin, Paul Cassirer, XI. Jahrgang. VI Ausstellung, Jan. 22–Feb. 22, 1909, cat. 8, as Heuschober bei Sonnenuntergang.[342]781

Copenhagen, Musée Royal de Copenhague, Exposition d’art français du XIXe siècle, May 15–June 30, 1914, cat. 149, as Höstak. Solnedgant.—Meule: soleil couchant (1891). Galeries Durand-Ruel.[343]782

Possibly Paris, Galeries Durand-Ruel, Tableaux par Claude Monet, Mar. 2–28, 1914, cat. 43, as Meules, soleil couchant. 1891.[344]783

Arts Club of Chicago, Paintings by Cl. Monet in Retrospect 1868–1913, Jan. 6–31, 1933, cat. 11.[345]784

Los Angeles County Museum of Art, A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, June 28–Sept. 16, 1984, cat. 110 (ill.); Art Institute of Chicago, Oct. 23, 1984–Jan. 6, 1985; Paris, Galeries Nationales, Grand Palais, as L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, Feb. 4–Apr. 22, 1985 (Los Angeles and Chicago only).[346]785

Boston, Museum of Fine Arts, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, Feb. 7–Apr. 29, 1990, cat. 28 (ill.); Art Institute of Chicago, May 19–Aug. 12, 1990; London, Royal Academy of Arts, Sept. 7–Dec. 9, 1990.786

Art Institute of Chicago, Claude Monet, 1840–1926, July 22–Nov. 26, 1995, cat. 100 (ill.). (fig. 32.32) 
787

A corner gallery with dark brown wood walls displays five gold-framed pictures arranged left to right along two adjoining walls. Each picture shows a large dark mound or rock in blue or purple water beneath a pale sky, with color shifting from warmer pink-orange tones in some to cooler gray-blue in others; sizes are medium and similar, with slight variations in width. A low silver post-and-rope barrier runs in front of the wall, and the floor is a medium-brown herringbone wood. No people are present.

Fig. 32.32


Installation of Monet’s Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890/91) in Claude Monet, 1840–1926, Art Institute of Chicago, July 22–Nov. 26, 1995. Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.

Moscow, State Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Klod Mone [Claude Monet], Nov. 26, 2001–Feb. 21, 2002, cat. 31 (ill.); Saint Petersburg, State Hermitage Museum, May 1–15, 2002.788

Fort Worth, Tex., Kimbell Art Museum, The Impressionists: Master Paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago, June 29–Nov. 2, 2008, cat. 80 (ill.).
789

Possibly Galeries Durand-Ruel, Paris, Exposition Claude Monet, exh. cat. (Galeries Durand-Ruel, 1891), p. 16, cat. 12.[347]790

Fine Arts Society, Catalogue: Loan Exhibition, exh. cat. (Fine Arts Society, [1893]), p. 39, cat. 41.791

Durand-Ruel Galleries, New York, Exposition of Forty Paintings by Claude Monet, exh. cat. (Durand-Ruel, 1895), cat. 44.[348]792

St. Botolph Club, Boston, Exhibition of Paintings by Claude Monet, exh. cat. (St. Botolph Club, 1895), cat. 11.[349]793

Offizieller Katalog der Internationalen Kunst-Ausstellung des Vereins bildender Künstler Münchens (E. V.), “Secession” 1900, exh. cat. (F. Bruckmann, [1900]), p. 22, cat. 195.[350]794

Karl Voll, “Die Internationale Kunstausstellung 1900 der Münchener Secession,” Die Kunst für Alle: Malerei, Plastik, Graphik, Architektur 15, 21 (Aug. 1, 1900), p. 485.795

Possibly Galeries Durand-Ruel, Paris, Tableaux par Claude Monet, exh. cat. (Galeries Durand-Ruel, 1914), cat. 43.[351]796

Musée Royal de Copenhague, Exposition d’art français du XIXe siècle, exh. cat. (Dansk Kunstmuseums Forening, 1914), p. 37, cat. 149.[352]797

Gustave Geffroy, Claude Monet, sa vie, son temps, son oeuvre (Paris, 1922), opp. p. 240 (ill.).798

Oscar Reuterswärd, Monet: En konstnärshistorik (Bonniers, 1948), p. 193, fig. 90.799

Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, Peintures, 1887–1898  (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), pp. 38; 142; 143, cat. 1284 (ill.).800

Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 4, Peintures, 1899–1926 (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), p. 79, n. 726 (cat. 1284).801

Art Institute of Chicago, “Acquisitions,” Mosaic (July–Aug. 1983), p. 8 (ill.).802

Art Institute of Chicago, Art Institute of Chicago Annual Report 1982-83 (Art Institute of Chicago, 1983), pp. 5, fig. 6; 12.  803

Art Institute of Chicago, A Record of Sharing with Chicago’s Masterpiece, annual report supplement (Art Institute of Chicago, [1983]), p. 15 (ill.). 804

Robert Gordon and Andrew Forge, Monet (Abrams, 1983), pp. 161 (ill.), 163.805

“French Paintings Recently Acquired by the Art Institute of Chicago,” Burlington Magazine 76, 976 (July 1984), p. 465, fig. 91.806

Art Institute of Chicago, Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies, 11, 1 (Fall 1984), front cover (detail), p. 2.807

Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 (Fall 1984), pp. 4–5, pl. 1; 6; 7; 12; 16–17, fig. 12 (ill.); 19; 21, n. 6.808

Andrea P. A. Belloli, ed., A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), p. 365.809

Richard R. Brettell, “The Fields of France,” in A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, ed. Andrea P. A. Belloli, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1984), pp. 246; 260–262; 269, no. 110 (ill.).810

Richard R. Brettell, “La champagne française,” in Réunion des Musées Nationaux, L’impressionnisme et le paysage français, exh. cat. (Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1985), pp. 261; 278; 282–291, no. 110 (ill.).811

Richard R. Brettell, Post-Impressionists (Art Institute of Chicago, 1987), pp. 35, 38 (ill.); 118.812

Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), pp. 3; 77; 81; 88, pl. 27; 296, cat. 28.813

Martha Kapos, ed., The Impressionists: A Retrospective (Hugh Lauter Levin/Macmillan, 1991), p. 311, pl. 101.814

Sylvie Patin, Monet: “Un oeil . . . mais, bon Dieu, quel oeil!” (Gallimard/Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1991), pp. 104 (ill.), 105 (detail), 172. Translated by Anthony Roberts as Monet: The Ultimate Impressionist (Abrams, 1993), pp. 104 (ill.), 105 (detail), 171.815

Anne Rorimer, “The Date Paintings of On Kawara,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 17, 2 (1991), p. 122, fig. 2.816

John Sallis, “Monet’s Grainstacks: Shades of Time,” Tema Celeste International Art Magazine 30 (Mar.- Apr. 1991), pp. 58 (ill.); 67, n. 13. 817

Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Catalogue raisonné, vol. 5, Supplément aux peintures: Dessins; Pastels; Index (Wildenstein Institute, 1991), pp. 48, cat. 1284; 200, letters 2833, 2835–2837.818

Richard Shiff, “‘Il faut que les yeux soient émus’: Impressionisme et symbolism vers 1891,” Revue de l’art 96 (1992), p. 27, fig. 3.819

Andrew Forge, Monet, Artists in Focus (Art Institute of Chicago, 1995), pp. 44; 49; 90, pl. 19; 108.820

Charles F. Stuckey, with the assistance of Sophia Shaw, Claude Monet, 1840–1926, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago/Thames & Hudson, 1995), pp. 121, cat. 100 (ill.); 226; 227; 245.821

Daniel Wildenstein, Monet, or The Triumph of Impressionism, cat. rais., vol. 1 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 274–75, cat. 1284 (ill.); 275.822

Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595  (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1284 (ill.); 501.823

John Sallis, Shades—Of Painting at the Limit (Indiana University Press, 1998), n. pag., pl. 11; 54–55.824

T. J. Clark, Farewell to an Idea: Episodes from a History of Modernism (Yale University Press, 1999), pp. 76; 110, fig. 57; 111.825

Art Institute of Chicago, Impressionism and Post-Impressionism in the Art Institute of Chicago, selected by James N. Wood (Art Institute of Chicago/Hudson Hills, 2000), pp. 134–35 (ill.).826

A. G. Kostenevich, Klod Mone [Claude Monet], exh. cat. (Khudozhnik i Kniga, 2001), pp. 84, cat. 31 (ill.); 85 (detail).827

Richard R. Brettell, From Monet to Van Gogh: A History of Impressionism, vol. 2 (Teaching Co., 2002), pp. 161, 167, 183.828

Debra N. Mancoff, Monet: Nature into Art (Publications International, 2003), pp. 11 (ill.), 78–79 (ill.), 128.829

Anna Gruetzner Robins, “‘Slabs of Pink and Lumps of Brown’: The Critical Reaction to the Exhibition of a Monet Grainstack Painting in Britain in 1893,” in Monet and French Landscape: Vétheuil and Normandy, ed. Frances Fowle (National Galleries of Scotland, 2006), pp. 159; 168, n. 10.830

Charles F. Stuckey, “The Predications and Implications of Monet’s Series,” in The Repeating Image: Multiples in French Painting from David to Matisse, ed. Eik Kahng, exh. cat. (Walters Art Museum/Yale University Press, 2007), pp. 85; 87–88, fig. 5.831

Eric M. Zafran, “Monet in America,” in Wildenstein and Co., Claude Monet (1840–1926): A Tribute to Daniel Wildenstein and Katia Granoff, exh. cat. (Wildenstein, 2007), p. 104.832

Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Impressionists: Master Paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago/Kimbell Art Museum, 2008), pp. 21 (ill.), 22; 103; 108; 156; 159, cat. 80 (ill.). Simultaneously published as Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Age of Impressionism at the Art Institute of Chicago (Art Institute of Chicago/Yale University Press, 2008), pp. 21 (ill.), 22; 103; 108; 156; 159, cat. 80 (ill.).[353]
833

Documentation from the Durand-Ruel Archives

Inventory number
Stock Durand-Ruel New York 1060
Durand-Ruel, New York, stock books 1888–1893 and stock book 1894–1905[354]834

Inventory number
Stock Durand-Ruel Paris 5503
Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book 1901–13[355]835

Inventory number
Stock Durand-Ruel Paris 8601
Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock books 1901–1913 and 1912–21[356]836

Inventory number
Stock Durand-Ruel New York 3899
Durand-Ruel, New York, stock books 1904–1924 and 1949[357]837

Photograph number
Durand-Ruel Paris photo no. 5978[358]
838

Other Documents

Label (fig. 32.33)
839

Top center is a rectangular brown label with scalloped edges on a darker, worn surface. Handwritten text across the top line reads “Monet No. 3899,” the next line reads “Meule, soleil couchant,” and the line below reads “1891.” In the bottom right corner, a small “C3” is written.

Fig. 32.33


Label (fig. 32.34)
840

A small rectangular tan label with dark handwritten text sits within a wider medium-brown border. From top to bottom, the lines read: “Monet n° 8601,” then “Meule, soleil couchant,” and at the bottom “1891.” The writing is dark brown or black on a light brown background, with the text centered on the label.

Fig. 32.34


Inscription (fig. 32.35)
841

A gray surface fills the frame, with closely spaced horizontal lines across the upper half. Near the upper center are faint dark markings, including shapes that resemble the digits 5 and 7, though indistinct. In the lower center, a long dark horizontal smudge spans roughly a third of the width, with a small pale scratch slightly to its right.

Fig. 32.35


Inscription (fig. 32.36)
842

Across the center of a rectangular plank with narrow horizontal lines, faint dark-gray markings run left to right on a medium-gray surface. The markings appear to be letters followed by numbers; the first group looks like two or three uppercase letters, and the number seems to begin with 3 and 6, with the remaining characters smudged and hard to read. A thinner strip runs along the top edge, and a thicker vertical strip forms the right border.

Fig. 32.36


Labels and Inscriptions

Undated

Label
Location: stretcher
Method: residue of paper label with some handwritten script
Content: [illegible] (fig. 32.37)
843

A close-up of a single horizontal wooden board fills the frame in dark to medium brown tones. Along the top is a darker strip with a few small gray-white specks; the center shows a broad, smudged dark patch with faint gray marks and a tiny tan chip on the right. The bottom third is lighter brown with clear horizontal grain lines and scattered lighter scuffs.

Fig. 32.37


Label
Location: stretcher
Method: handwritten label
Content: Monet no 8601 / Meule, soleil / couchant, 1891. (fig. 32.38)
844

A small, horizontal brown-tan paper label sits centered on a darker brown surface, with a thin border visible around it. Across the top line, dark ink handwriting reads “Monet n° 8601,” with the number on the right. The middle line reads “Meule, soleil,” and the bottom line reads “couchant, 1891,” with some letters lightly faded. The label occupies most of the frame left to right, and the handwriting is medium-sized relative to the label.

Fig. 32.38


Number
Location: stretcher
Method: handwritten
Content: 5957 (fig. 32.39)
845

From top to bottom, a brown surface with visible wood grain fills the frame, showing darker streaks and a few small knots. Across the center and lower half, faint black lines and scribbles run diagonally, with several short curved marks. Along the right edge is a long vertical crack, and near the bottom center is a rectangular patch of tan-yellow torn adhesive residue with a small triangular piece peeling upward.

Fig. 32.39


Number
Location: stretcher
Method: handwritten
Content: 5978 (fig. 32.40)
846

Top portion shows horizontal bands of dark and medium gray running left to right. In the upper middle, faint dotted markings resembling the numerals 5 and 7 are visible; below them, a dark horizontal bar spans most of the width across the middle. The lower area is medium gray with a few small light spots and thin marks.

Fig. 32.40


Inscription
Location: stretcher
Method: handwritten
Content: C9[?] (fig. 32.41)
847

From left to right, a rough, uneven vertical edge borders a broad light‑gray surface with faint smudges. Adjacent on the right, a narrower medium‑gray strip has two small round holes and several curved dark scribbles; at the far right, a darker gray band with fine vertical texture runs from top to bottom. Near the lower center, a wedge‑shaped lighter patch interrupts the smooth area.

Fig. 32.41


Number
Location: stretcher
Method: handwritten
Content: 12 (fig. 32.42)
848

Top edge shows a thin strip of tan, textured surface. Below it, a large rectangular dark-brown plank with horizontal grain lines fills most of the view, with lighter brown tones toward the bottom and faint dark blue scribble-like marks slightly left of center. A narrow vertical edge runs along the right side, and a thin dark border lines the bottom.

Fig. 32.42


Inscription
Location: stretcher
Method: handwritten
Content: [illegible] (fig. 32.43)
849

Across the entire frame, a light gray rectangular surface with fine, evenly spaced horizontal lines fills the view. Near the center-left, faint curved and short straight marks appear, only slightly darker than the background. On the right side, a single dark angled line forms a shape resembling the number 7, larger and bolder than the other markings. No other distinct elements are visible.

Fig. 32.43


Inscription
Location: previous frame; transcription in conservation file[359]
Method: handwritten in red
Content: – MELT – TOP (fig. 32.44)
850

Single line of black, typewritten text on a white background reads: “handprinted in red -- MELT - TOP.” The words run left to right on one row, with a double hyphen between “red” and “MELT,” and a single hyphen between “MELT” and “TOP.”

Fig. 32.44


Pre-1980

Label
Location: stretcher
Method: printed label with handwritten script
Content: Monet No. 3899 / Meule, soleil couchant / 1891 / e[or l?]3 (fig. 32.45)
851

A rectangular tan label with scalloped edges sits centered on a darker brown, worn surface. Top line, left to right: “Monet” and “No. 3899” in dark cursive; middle line: “Meule, soleil couchant”; bottom line: “1891” on the left and a small “C3” on the right. A small hole appears near the label’s right edge, and faint horizontal rules separate the lines; the label fills most of the frame.

Fig. 32.45


Post-1980

Inscription
Location: stretcher
Method: handwritten
Content: DR 8601 (fig. 32.46)
852

A horizontally lined gray surface fills most of the frame, with a narrow darker strip along the top and a vertical border on the right. From left to right across the middle, faint dark markings form two letters, possibly “JH,” followed by four digits, “3649.” Tones range from light gray to near black, and the characters are large relative to the height of the lined area.

Fig. 32.46


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO / ARTIST: Claude Monet / TITLE: Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890–91) / MEDIUM: Oil on canvas / CREDIT: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Daniel C. Searle / ACC.#: 1983.166 (fig. 32.47)
853

Single rectangular museum label with black text on a light gray background. From top to bottom, the text reads: “THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO,” then “ARTIST: Claude Monet,” “TITLE: Stacks of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (1890–91),” “MEDIUM: Oil on canvas,” “CREDIT: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Daniel C. Searle,” and “ACC.#: 1983.166.” The information is presented in short lines with category labels followed by their details.

Fig. 32.47


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label
Content: Los Angeles County Museum of Art / 5905 Wilshire Boulevard / Los Angeles, California 90036 / EX.84.503 cat. #110 / Exhib.: A DAY IN THE COUNTRY: IMPRESSIONISM AND THE / FRENCH LANDSCAPE / Dates: 6/28/84–9/16/84 / Artist: Claude Monet / Title: The Grainstack, Thaw, Sunset. / Date: 1891 / Medium: Oil on canvas / Size: 25 5/8 × 36 1/4 in. / Lender: PRIVATE COLLECTION U.S.A. (Mr. and Mrs. G.D. / Searle) / Accessory Size: 35 3/8 × 45 7/8 × 3 3/4 in. (fig. 32.48)
854

Top to bottom: a dark gray header with black text reads “Los Angeles County Museum of Art,” with a faint address line and the codes “EX. 84.503” and “cat. #110” to the right. Below, a cream section lists: “Exhib.: A DAY IN THE COUNTRY: IMPRESSIONISM AND THE FRENCH LANDSCAPE”; “Dates: 6/28/84–9/16/84”; “Artist: Claude Monet”; “Title: The Grainstack, Thaw, Sunset.”; “Date: 1891”; “Medium: Oil on canvas”; “Size: 25 5/8 x 36 1/4 in.”; “Lender: PRIVATE COLLECTION U.S.A. (Mr. and Mrs. G.D. Searle).” At the bottom, “Accessory size: 35 3/8 x 45 7/8 x 3 3/4 in.” appears, all text in black on a beige background.

Fig. 32.48


Label
Location: backing board
Method: printed label with typewritten script
Content: Museum of Fine Arts / Boston, MA 02115 / W.1284 GRAINSTACK / Art I., Chicago (fig. 32.49)
855

Beige rectangular label with rounded corners on a light background, printed in blue and black text. Top section in blue reads “Museum of Fine Arts” and, on the next line, “Boston, MA 02115,” with a small blue dot at the upper left. Middle section shows black text “W.1284 GRAINSTACK” with a blue dot to the left and a blue underline; the bottom section reads “Art I., Chicago” in black, again with a blue dot to the left and a blue underline.

Fig. 32.49


Number
Location: stretcher
Method: handwritten script on brown paper
Content: 1983.16[6] (fig. 32.50)
856

Left side shows a worn, tan surface with dark gray handwritten numerals “1983.” near the center-left. To the right, the tan layer is chipped, and beside the chipped edge are faint marks resembling “/6” or “16.” Farther right is a darker brown area with horizontal bands, creating a strong contrast with the lighter tan section. Colors are mainly tan, gray, and dark brown.

Fig. 32.50


Examination and Analysis Techniques

X-radiography

Westinghouse X-ray unit, scanned on Epson Expressions 10000XL flatbed scanner. Scans digitally composited by Robert G. Erdmann, University of Arizona.857

Infrared Reflectography

Goodrich/Sensors Unlimited SU640SDV-1.7RT with H filter (1.1–1.4 µm) and J filter (1.5–1.7 µm); Inframetrics Infracam with 1.5–1.73 µm filter; Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-Nite 1000B/2 mm filter (1.0–1.1 µm).858

Visible Light

Natural-light, raking-light, and transmitted-light overalls, and macrophotography: Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-NiteCC1 filter.859

Ultraviolet

Fujifilm S5 Pro with X-NiteCC1 filter and Kodak Wratten 2E filter.860

High-Resolution Visible Light (and Ultraviolet)

Sinar P3 camera with Sinarback eVolution 75 H (PECA 918 UV/IR interference cut filter and Kodak Wratten 2E filter).861

Microscopy and Photomicrographs

Sample and cross-sectional analysis using a Zeiss Axioplan 2 research microscope equipped with reflected light/UV fluorescence and a Zeiss AxioCam MRc5 digital camera. Types of illumination used: darkfield, differential interference contrast (DIC), and UV. In situ photomicrographs with a Wild Heerbrugg M7A StereoZoom microscope fitted with an Olympus DP71 microscope digital camera.862

X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy (XRF)

Several spots on the painting were analyzed in situ with a Bruker/Keymaster TRACeR III-V with rhodium tube.863

Polarized Light Microscopy (PLM)

Zeiss Universal research microscope.864

Scanning Electron Microscopy/Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (SEM/EDX)

Cross sections analyzed after carbon coating with a Hitachi S-3400N-II VP-SEM with an Oxford EDS and a Hitachi solid-state BSE detector. Analysis was performed at the Northwestern University Atomic and Nanoscale Characterization Experimental (NUANCE) Center, Electron Probe Instrumentation Center (EPIC) facility.865

Automated Thread Counting

Thread count and weave information were determined by Thread Count Automation Project software.[360]866

Image Registration Software

Overlay images registered using a novel image-based algorithm developed by Damon M. Conover (GW), John K. Delaney (GW, NGA), and Murray H. Loew (GW) of the George Washington University’s School of Engineering and Applied Science and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.[361]
867

Image Inventory

The image inventory compiles records of all known images of the artwork on file in the Conservation Department, the Imaging Department, and the Department of Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture at the Art Institute of Chicago (fig. 32.51).
868

Fig. 32.51
Location/Negative # Format Purpose Date Lighting, Notes
C49643      Unknown Normal, overall
Curatorial 8 1/2 × 11 CT   Unknown  
E14475 4 × 5 CT Pretreatment 1990s? Normal, overall
E32216 4 × 5 CT Posttreatment Oct. 15, 1996 Normal, overall
132277 Digital Loan exam Nov. 2008 Annotated image E32216
Conservation Digital OSCI Sept. 1, 2010 Detail images of verso, labels (6 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI Sept. 1, 2010 X-ray films scanned/digitally composited, overall
Conservation Digital  OSCI Sept. 3, 2010 Normal, overall
Conservation Digital OSCI Sept. 3, 2010 Raking light, overall (2 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI Sept. 3, 2010 Ultraviolet, overall 
Conservation Digital OSCI Sept. 3, 2010 Infrared (Fuji, 1000B/2 mm filter), overall
Conservation Digital OSCI Sept. 3, 2010 Macro details (14 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI Sept. 7, 2010 Transmitted light, overall (2 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI Sept. 7, 2010 Transmitted infrared (Fuji, 1000B/2 mm filter), overall (3 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI Sept. 8, Oct. 14, Oct. 21, 2010  Photomicrographs of surface (53 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI Oct. 7, 2010 Normal and infrared; detail images of verso, labels (15 total)
Conservation Digital OSCI Oct. 13, 2010 Infrared (Inframetrics, 1.5–1.73 µm filter), overall
G39493 Digital OSCI Mar. 12, 2012 Normal, overall; composite of G39984–G40003
G39984–G40003 Digital OSCI Mar. 12, 2012 Sections (20 total)
G39495 Digital OSCI Mar. 14, 2012 Normal, frame only
Conservation Digital OSCI Mar. 14, 2012 Infrared (Goodrich, 1.5–1.7 µm filter), overall
G39494 Digital OSCI Sept. 21, 2012 Ultraviolet, overall

Stacks of Wheat, 1891 (Cat. 33)

Technical Summary

Claude Monet’s Stacks of Wheat is one of two drawings he made of the subject.[362] It was created with black chalk on laid paper, laid down on cardboard. Fine chalk lines define the general forms of the haystacks in the foreground and then broader passages produce the modeled effects of light and shadow within the form. There is a narrow absence of media between the fine outer lines and the interior shading that creates the effect of illumination from behind (fig. 33.1).[363] Stumping was used selectively to suggest trees, bushes, and a house in the background. The drawing process is direct, and the composition has no visible areas of erasure or reworking.
869

Top left shows faint gray smudges on a beige background, with a few small dark specks. Center right holds a large, rounded area of densely packed black dots that curves downward. Bottom left has a small cluster of black specks, and two tiny brown spots appear along the left side. The dark mass on the right is the largest element, with smaller, lighter markings scattered elsewhere.

Fig. 33.1


Detail of center area in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (1891) showing the absence of media between the fine chalk lines and the interior shading in the haystack that creates the effect of illumination from behind.

The chalk deposited preferentially along high points in the support, possibly from the mount or another surface upon which he worked, creating a type of frottage (fig. 33.2). Light transfer of the medium across the sheet has also transferred selectively onto these peaks across the paper surface, rendering the laid paper mold pattern visible.
870

Left side shows a large, irregular dark area made of dense black speckles and shading, slanting downward toward the center. From the middle to the right, lighter gray smudges and scattered dots stretch horizontally, with a faint, straight line running across the mid-height. The background is tan with subtle vertical striations and two small brown spots near the upper-right and lower-right.

Fig. 33.2


Detail of center right area in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (1891) showing the frottage, or selective transfer of chalk, seen as small dense areas of black chalk.

Signature

Claude Monet (recto, lower left, in black chalk) (fig. 33.3).
871

Light beige background fills the frame with subtle horizontal texture lines. Near the lower center, a single line of dark gray handwriting reads “Claude Monet,” small in scale relative to the surrounding blank space. Along the bottom edge are faint smudges and a light horizontal mark, slightly darker toward the right.

Fig. 33.3


Detail of signature at bottom left in Monet’s Stacks of Wheat (1891).

Media and Support

Support Characteristics

Primary paper type
Cream (discolored to tan), medium-thick, moderately textured laid paper.[364]872

Chain line orientation and frequency
Horizontal, 2.3 cm.873

Laid line frequency
6–7 cm.874

Furnish
Uniform, short cream and tan fibers with occasional brown-fiber inclusions.875

Formation
Even, machine made.876

Other characteristics
All edges are trimmed straight to the dimensions of the cardboard mount. It is unclear whether the paper was mounted to the board later and then trimmed down or manufactured as a drawing or illustration board.877

Dimensions
18.2 × 25.4 cm (7 1/8 × 10 in.).878

Secondary support
Cardboard. The cardboard is composed of moderately long paper fibers, with visible paper-bark inclusions. Under magnification, tiny spots of blue pigment are visible in some areas, and there is a pale-blue spot in the upper right area. Gummed, tan paper tape was applied around the perimeter.879

Dimensions
18.2× 25.4 × 0.15 cm (7 1/8 × 10 × 1/16 in.).880

Preparatory Layers
No artistic surface alterations or coatings are visible under normal conditions or under magnification. Under UV illumination, there is a pale-yellow visible-light fluorescence overall on the paper surface that is characteristic of a light gelatin surface size.881

Media Characteristics
The drawing was created with black chalk. The chalk lines are dense, cohesive, and uniform, characteristics of a somewhat hard, fabricated manufacture. The stacks in the foreground were initially defined with fine crayon lines, broader passages were then applied to create the effects of light and shadow within the form. There is a narrow absence of media between the fine outer lines and the interior shading that gives the effect of illumination from behind. A stump was used selectively to suggest trees, bushes, and a house in the background. Small clumps of chalk have accumulated along peaks in the paper that resulted from the laid mold and from fiber clumps in the primary support. The chalk also accumulated along high points in the secondary support, creating a type of frottage.882

There does not appear to be drawing on the verso; the mount prevents study of the verso.883

Compositional Development
No revisions or changes are visible in the composition in normal conditions or under magnification.884

Surface Treatment
No fixatives or coatings are visible in normal conditions, under UV illumination, or under magnification.885

Condition History

The drawing is mounted overall to cardboard; some areas of adhesion have detached, creating bubbles between the paper support and the cardboard mount. There is a large area of loss in the paper at the right top edge that is 2.5 × 0.3 cm in dimension, exposing the mount below. A fine, one-centimeter-long fold in the paper is visible along the right side of the top edge. The paper has discolored overall, caused by overexposure to light and inherent qualities of the paper. The original, lighter tonality is evident along the perimeter, which was covered by an overmat. The overmat contained a poor-quality, acidic core material that caused mat burn along the mat opening and paper interface. Remnants of the overmat are evident in some areas along the perimeter. There are also small brown stains (foxing spots) at the center top and along the bottom, and right sides. The drawing exhibits visible smudging and transfer. There are fine creases on the center right and center bottom area.

Kimberly Nichols
886

Private collector, Pennsylvania, to May 1991.[365]887

Sold, Sotheby’s, New York, May 8, 1991, lot 101, to Dorothy Braude Edinburg.888

Given by Dorothy Braude Edinburg to the Art Institute of Chicago, 2013.
889

Art Institute of Chicago, Drawings in Dialogue: Old Master through Modern; The Harry B. and Bessie K. Braude Memorial Collection, June 3–July 30, 2006, pp. 134–35, cat. 94 (ill.).
890

Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Catalogue raisonné, vol. 5, Supplément aux peintures: Dessins; Pastels; Index (Wildenstein Institute, 1991), p. 130, D444bis (ill.).
891

Inscriptions, and Distinguishing Marks

No inscriptions or marks are visible due to the mount (verso).892

Examination Conditions and Technical Analysis

Raking Visible Light

Paper support characteristics identified.893

Transmitted Visible Light

Paper mold characteristics identified.894

Ultraviolet-Induced Visible Fluorescence (365 nm)

Light surface size detected overall.895

Binocular Microscopy (80–100x)

Media identified.896

Image Inventory

The image inventory compiles records of all known images of the artwork on file in the Imaging Department and in the conservation and curatorial files in the Department of Prints and Drawings at the Art Institute of Chicago (fig. 33.4).
897

Fig. 33.4

Location/Negative #

Format

Purpose

Date

Lighting, Notes

G22504

Digital

 

Nov. 29, 2004

 

Notes

  1. Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (W 1269) corresponds to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 483; 485, cat. 1269 (ill.). The Art Institute currently uses the title that resulted from the research for the exhibition 1995 exhibition Claude Monet (1840–1926) and from consulting several Monet scholars. See Tracie Nappi, European Painting, Art Institute of Chicago, memo, Mar. 26, 1996, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. This painting had the following titles during the lifetime of the artist:
    May 1891: Meules. (Fin de l’été.) (Galeries Durand-Ruel, Exposition d’oeuvres récentes de Claude Monet, exh. cat. [Galeries Durand-Ruel, 1891], p. 13, cat. 1).

    May 9, 1891: Meules, fin de l’été (Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book for 1891–1901 [no. 938]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    June 26, 1891: Meules, fin de l’été (Durand-Ruel, Paris, Brouillard for 1888–91; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Aug. 4, 1891: Meules, fin de l’été (Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book 1888–1901 and Brouillard for 1888–91 [no. 938]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.)

    Mar. 1905: Meules. Fin de l’Eté. 1891 (Copley Society, Boston, Loan Collection of Paintings by Claude Monet and Eleven Sculptures by August Rodin, exh. cat. [Copley Society, 1905], p. 13, cat. 9).

    Possibly May 10, 1910: Haystacks (Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings from the Collection of Mrs. Potter Palmer, exh. cat. [Art Institute of Chicago, 1910], cat. 34).

  2. The painting was dated 1890/91 by James N. Wood and Douglas Druick; see Tracie Nappi, European Painting, Art Institute of Chicago, memo, Mar. 26, 1996, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. This range includes the inscribed date of 1891 and allows for the possibility that Monet began the painting in 1890.
  3. Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (W1270) corresponds to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 483; 485, cat. 1270 (ill.). The Art Institute currently uses the title that resulted from the research for the exhibition 1995 exhibition Claude Monet (1840–1926) and from consulting several Monet scholars. See Tracie Nappi, European Painting, Art Institute of Chicago, memo, Mar. 26, 1996, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. This painting had the following titles during the lifetime of the artist:
    Sept. 2, 1891: Meules, fin de l’été (Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for 1888–93 [no. 853]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 18, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Apr. 19, 1892: Meules, fin de l’été (Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for 1888–93 [no. 924]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 18, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Nov. 22, 1892: Meules, fin de l’été (Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for 1888–93 [no. 948]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 18, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

  4. The painting was dated 1890/91 by James N. Wood and Douglas Druick; see Tracie Nappi, European Painting, Art Institute of Chicago, memo, March 26, 1996, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. This range includes the inscribed date of 1891 and allows for the possibility that Monet began the painting in 1890.
  5. Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (W1278) corresponds to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 489; 492, cat. 1278 (ill.); 500. The Art Institute currently uses the title that resulted from the research for the exhibition 1995 exhibition Claude Monet (1840–1926) and from consulting several Monet scholars. See Tracie Nappi, European Painting, Art Institute of Chicago, memo, Mar. 26, 1996, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. This painting had the following titles during the lifetime of the artist:

    July 20, 1891: Meules, effet de neige, soleil couchant (Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book for 1891–1901 [no. 1075]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Feb. 29, 1892: Meules, effet de neige, soleil couchant (Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for 1888–1893 [no. 847]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Mar. 1905: Meules. Effet de Neige, Soleil Couchant. 1891 (Copley Society of Boston, Loan Collection of Paintings by Claude Monet and Eleven Sculptures by August Rodin, exh. cat. [Copley Society, 1905], p. 26, cat 84).

  6. The painting was dated 1890/91 by James N. Wood and Douglas Druick; see Tracie Nappi, European Painting, Art Institute of Chicago, memo, Mar. 26, 1996, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. This range includes the inscribed date of 1891 and allows for the possibility that Monet began the painting in 1890.
  7. Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (W1281) corresponds to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 494, cat. 1281 (ill.); 500. The Art Institute currently uses the title that resulted from the research for the exhibition 1995 exhibition Claude Monet (1840–1926) and from consulting several Monet scholars. See Tracie Nappi, European Painting, Art Institute of Chicago, memo, Mar. 26, 1996, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. The painting had the following titles during the lifetime of the artist:

    May 1891: Meules. (Fin de l’été.) (Galeries Durand-Ruel, Exposition d’oeuvres récentes de Claude Monet, exh. cat. [Galeries Durand-Ruel, 1891], p. 15, cat. 9; as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    May 9, 1891: Les Meules, effet de neige, temps couvert (Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book for 1891–1901 [no. 942] see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Nov. 16, 1892: Meules, effet de neige (Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for 1888–1893 [no. 976]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Mar. 31, 1893: Meules, effet de neige (Durand-Ruel,New York,stock book for 1888–93 [no. 976]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Apr. 12, 1893: Meules, effet de neige (purchase receipt on Durand-Ruel letterhead, dated April 12, 1893, includes this painting as one of several sold by Durand-Ruel, New York, to M. A. Ryerson. Photocopy in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Jan. 7, 1915: The Haystack (Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Catalogue of the Inaugural Exhibition, exh. cat. [Minneapolis Society of Fine Arts, 1915], p. 44, cat. 255).

  8. The painting was dated 1890/91 by James N. Wood and Douglas Druick; see Tracie Nappi, European Painting, Art Institute of Chicago, memo, Mar. 26, 1996, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. This range includes the inscribed date of 1891 and allows for the possibility that Monet began the painting in 1890.
  9. Stack of Wheat (W1283) corresponds to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1283 (ill.); 501. The Art Institute currently uses the title that resulted from the research for the exhibition 1995 exhibition Claude Monet (1840–1926) and from consulting several Monet scholars. See Tracie Nappi, European Painting, Art Institute of Chicago, memo, Mar. 26, 1996, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. The painting had the following titles during the lifetime of the artist:

    Possibly May 1891: Meule. (Hiver.) (Galeries Durand-Ruel, Exposition d’oeuvres récentes de Claude Monet, exh. cat. [Galeries Durand-Ruel, 1891], p. 16, cat. 11; according to Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 [Fall 1984], p. 7. This identification is not presented by Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 [Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996], pp. 495, cat. 1283 [ill.]; 501).

  10. The painting was dated 1890/91 by James N. Wood and Douglas Druick; see Tracie Nappi, European Painting, Art Institute of Chicago, memo, Mar. 26, 1996, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. This range includes the inscribed date of 1891 and allows for the possibility that Monet began the painting in 1890.
  11. Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (W1284) corresponds to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1284 (ill.); 501. The Art Institute currently uses the title that resulted from the research for the exhibition 1995 exhibition Claude Monet (1840–1926) and from consulting several Monet scholars. See Tracie Nappi, European Painting, Art Institute of Chicago, memo, Mar. 26, 1996, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. This painting had the following titles during the lifetime of the artist:

    Possibly May 1891: Meule. (Fin du jour.) (Galeries Durand-Ruel, Paris, Exposition Claude Monet, exh. cat. [Galeries Durand-Ruel, 1891],p. 16, cat. 12; according to Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 [Fall 1984], p. 7).

    Feb. 1893: The Haystack—Thaw. (Fine Arts Society, Catalogue: Loan Exhibition, exh. cat. [Fine Arts Society, (1893)], p. 39, cat. 41).

    Apr. 11, 1893: The Haystack, Thaw (American Art Association, Catalogue of Modern Paintings Belonging to M. Knoedler & Co. Successors to Goupil & Co. to be Sold by Absolute Auction to Settle the Estate of the Late John Knoedler [American Art Association, 1893], p. 32, lot 77).

    Apr. 11, 1893: Meules, le dégel, soleil couchant (Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for 1888–93 [no. 1060]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Jan. 12, 1895: Meule—Dégel—Soleil couchant. 1891 (Durand-Ruel Galleries, New York, Exposition of Forty Paintings by Claude Monet, exh. cat. [Durand-Ruel, 1895], cat. 44; confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Feb. 4, 1895: Meule. Le Degel. Soleil couchant. 1891 (St. Botolph Club, Boston, Exhibition of Paintings by Claude Monet, exh. cat. (St. Botolph Club, 1895), cat. 11; confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Sept. 30, 1899: Meules, le dégel, soleil couchant (Durand-Ruel, New York stock book for 1894–1905 [no. 1060]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Nov. 13, 1899: Meules au soleil couchant (Durand-Ruel, Paris stock book for 1901–13 [no. 5503]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    1900: Heuschober. Untergehende Sonne (Offizieller Katalog der Internationalen Kunst-Ausstellung des Vereins bildender Künstler Münchens (E. V.), “Secession” 1900, exh. cat. (F. Bruckmann, [1900]), p. 22, cat. 195).

    May 27, 1903: Meules au soleil couchant (Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book for 1901–13 [no. 5503]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Jan. 11, 1908: Meules, soleil couchant (Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book for 1901–13 [no. 8601]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Jan. 22, 1909: Heuschober bei Sonnenuntergang (Paul Cassirer Gallery, Berling, XI Jahrgang, VI Ausstellung, cat. 8; according to Bernhard Echte and Walter Feilchenfeldt, eds., with assistance by Petra Cordioli, Kunstsalon Paul Cassirer: Die Ausstellungen 1908–1910 [Nimbus. Kunst und Bücher, 2013], pp. 146 [ill.], 151, 493).

    Mar. 2, 1914: Meules, soleil couchant, 1891 (Galeries Durand-Ruel, Paris, Tableaux par Claude Monet, exh. cat. [Galeries Durand-Ruel, 1914], cat. 43; according to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 [Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996], pp. 495, cat. 1284 [ill.]; 501. According to the Durand-Ruel Archives: “Wildenstein mentions another exhibition at Durand-Ruel Paris 1914 [“Tableaux par Claude Monet” Mar. 2–21, 1914, no. 43, Meules, soleil couchant], but we have no proof that it refers to the above mentioned picture.” See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    May 15, 1914: Höstak. Solnedgant.—Meule: soleil couchant, 1891 (Musée Royal de Copenhague, Exposition d’art français du XIXe siècle, exh. cat. (Dansk Kunstmuseums Forening, 1914), p. 37, cat. 149; confirmed byPaul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

    Dec. 9, 1915: Meules, le dégel, soleil couchant (Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for 1904–24 [no. 3899]; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago).

  12. The painting was dated 1890/91 by James N. Wood and Douglas Druick; see Tracie Nappi, European Painting, Art Institute of Chicago, memo, Mar. 26, 1996, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. This range includes the inscribed date of 1891 and allows for the possibility that Monet began the painting in 1890.
  13. Stacks of Wheat (D444bis) corresponds to Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Catalogue raisonné, cat. 5, Supplément aux peintures: Dessins; Pastels; Index (Wildenstein Institute, 1991), pp. 129–30, D444bis (ill.).
  14. Among the many scholarly treatments of Monet’s Stacks of Wheat series, the following were particularly helpful for this essay: Grace Seiberling, “Monet’s Series” (Ph.D diss., Yale University, 1976); Robert Herbert, “Method and Meaning in Monet,” Art in America 67 (Sept. 1979), pp. 90–108; John House, Monet (Phaidon, 1981); Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” 11, 1 (Autumn 1984), pp. 4–21; Charles S. Moffett, “Monet’s Haystacks,” in Aspects of Monet: A Symposium on the Artist’s Life and Times, ed. John Rewald and Frances Weitzenhoffer (Abrams, 1984), pp. 140–59; John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1986); Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989); Charles F. Stuckey, with the assistance of Sophia Shaw, Claude Monet, 1840–1926, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago, 1995/Thames & Hudson), pp. 219–21; Stephan Koja, Claude Monet, exh. cat. (Prestel, 1996), pp. 114–15; Daniel Wildenstein, Monet, or The Triumph of Impressionism, cat. rais., vol. 1 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 274–76; and Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595, pp. 482–503.
  15. Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), p. 15.
  16. See John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1986), pp. 197–99; and Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), pp. 31, 73, 77–78. Monet had included haystacks in a number of paintings between 1884 and 1887 as well as stacks of wheat in about five paintings of 1888–89. The paintings from 1884 and 1887 are Haystacks, Night Effect (1884; Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow [W900]); Haystacks, Hazy Sun (1884; private collection, Switzerland [W901]); Haystacks at Giverny (1884; Tsuneshi Suzuki, Japan [W902]); The Haystacks at Giverny (1885; private collection [W993]); The Haystack (1885; Ohara Museum of Art, Kurashiki, Okayama, Japan [W994]); Field at Giverny (1885; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston [W995]); A Haystack (1886; State Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg [W1073]); View of Giverny (1886; private collection, France [W1074]); Landscape at Giverny (1886–87; sale, Christie’s, New York, Nov. 11, 1992, no. 39 [W1123]); and Field at Giverny (1887; sale, Sotheby’s, New York, May 2, 2012, no. 35 [W1124]). The 1888–89 paintings are Grainstacks at Giverny, Sunset (1888; Saitama Museum of Modern Art, Urawa-shi, Japan [W1213]); Grainstacks at Giverny, Morning Effect (1889; sale, Sotheby’s, New York, May 1, 1996, no. 23 [W1214]); Grainstacks, White Frost Effect (1889; Hill-Stead Museum, Farmington, Conn. [W1215]); Grainstack at Giverny (1889; Tel Aviv Museum of Art [W1216]); and Grainstack on a Winter Evening (1888–89; destroyed in the San Francisco fire of 1906 [W1217a]). The number preceded by a W refers to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  17. Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), pp. 71, 74, 77. The dating of when Monet began the Stacks of Wheat is based on the letter Monet wrote to Gustave Geffroy on October 7, 1890. John House, for example, believes the first Stacks of Wheat canvases presumably date to late September or early October 1890. See John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1986), p. 199. Assessing four of Monet’s letters from the last week of August 1890, in which the artist describes his preoccupation with his work, Tucker (p. 74) concludes that Stacks of Wheat were begun at least a month or two earlier than the October 7, 1890, letter to Geffroy.
  18. John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1986), pp. 220–21.
  19. Monet to Gustave Geffroy, Oct. 7, 1890, quoted in John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1986), p. 198; original French in Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, Peintures, 1887–1898 (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), p. 258, letter 1076.
  20. John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1986), p. 193.
  21. John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1986), p. 201. House refers to the statement about “more serious qualities”; however, the original appears in Theodore Robinson’s diary, June 3, 1892, MS, Frick Art Reference Library, New York.
  22. Among the most important accounts are Robert Herbert, “Method and Meaning in Monet,” Art in America (Sept. 1979), p. 106; Richard R. Brettell, “The Fields of France,” in A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art/Art Institute of Chicago/Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1984), pp. 260, 262; and Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts/Yale University Press, 1989).
  23. Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), p. 69.
  24. Robert Herbert, “Method and Meaning in Monet,” Art in America 67 (Sept. 1979), p. 106.
  25. Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), p. 102. See also Richard R. Brettell, “The Fields of France,” in A Day in the Country: Impressionism and the French Landscape, exh. cat. (Los Angeles County Museum of Art/Art Institute of Chicago/Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1984), p. 262.
  26. For more on Monet’s self-promotion, see Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), pp. 195–97.
  27. Octave Mirbeau, “Claude Monet,” L’art dans les deux mondes, Mar. 7, 1891, pp. 181–85.
  28. “[N]ous ne pouvions nous arracher à la contemplation de vos Meules dont le blond rêve semblait s’amplifier, s’approfondir jusqu’à l’infini.” Octave Mirbeau to Monet, Feb. 10, 1891, in Octave Mirbeau, Correspondance avec Claude Monet, ed. Pierre Michel and Jean-François Nivet (Lérot, 1990), p. 118.
  29. “Croyez bien que dans l’article, en prophétisant le Monet que vous serez, je n’aurai garde d’oublier celui que vous êtes.” Octave Mirbeau to Monet, Feb. 10, 1891, in Correspondance avec Claude Monet, ed. Pierre Michel and Jean-François Nivet (Lérot, 1990), p. 119.
  30. Octave Mirbeau to Monet, 7 Mar. 1891, Correspondance avec Claude Monet, ed. Pierre Michel and Jean-François Nivet (Lérot, 1990), p. 123.
  31. The Hill-Stead painting was apparently sold before the exhibition opened in May 1891 and thus was not among the fifteen Stacks of Wheat canvases shown. As Jim Ganz noted in James A. Ganz and Richard Kendall, The Unknown Monet: Pastels and Drawings, exh. cat. (Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 2007), pp. 207–08, the Tokyo drawing was somewhat compromised in its gillotage printed form, being cropped in the upper and lower registers, which compressed the image into an oblong rectangle.
  32. Gustave Geffroy, Exposition Claude Monet, exh. cat. (Galeries Durand-Ruel, 1891), pp. 3, 10, as translated in Charles F. Stuckey, ed. Monet: A Retrospective (Hugh Lauter Levin, 1985), pp. 162, 164.
  33. W. G. C. Byvanck, Un hollandais à Paris en 1891: Sensations de littérature et d’art (Perrin, 1892), p. 177, as translated in Charles F. Stuckey, ed. Monet: A Retrospective (Hugh Lauter Levin, 1985), p. 166.
  34. Grace Seiberling, “Monet’s Series” (Ph.D diss., Yale University, 1976), p. 100; Charles S. Moffett, “Monet’s Haystacks,” in Aspects of Monet: A Symposium on the Artist’s Life and Times, ed. John Rewald and Frances Weitzenhoffer (Abrams, 1984), p. 142; Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 (Autumn 1984), pp. 4–21. Seiberling (p. 100) has noted that while Monet had shown groups of related works (the Gare Saint-Lazare paintings, for example) in a single exhibition, there is no evidence that they were hung together. The installation of Stacks of Wheat at Durand-Ruel in May 1891 was likely also informed by the dealer, who employed novel exhibition installations to remain competitive in the increasingly diverse and developed Paris art market. See Martha Ward, “Impressionist Installations and Private Exhibitions,” Art Bulletin 73, 4 (Dec. 1991), pp. 616–18.
  35. Paul Tucker identifies Le Bloc, Creuse (1889; Royal Collection, Britain [W1228]) as the Creuse painting that was exhibited. Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), p. 99. The number preceded by a W refers to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  36. Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), p. 78.
  37. Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), p. 78.
  38. Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), p. 77. See also John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1986), p. 213.
  39. See for example, Robert Herbert, “Method and Meaning in Monet,” Art in America 67 (Sept. 1979), pp. 90–108.
  40. See, for example, Anthea Callen, The Art of Impressionism: Painting Technique and the Making of Modernity (Yale University Press, 2000), pp. 82–83; John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1986), pp. 190–91; Stephan Koja, Claude Monet, exh. cat. (Prestel, 1996), p. 114; Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), pp. 78–82.
  41. The number preceded by a W refers to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  42. Paul Hayes Tucker, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, exh. cat. (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston/Yale University Press, 1989), pp. 77–78.
  43. Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer) (cat. 27), Grainstacks at the End of the Summer, Morning Effect (1891; Musée d’Orsay, Paris [W1266]), Grainstacks in Bright Sunlight (1890; Hill-Stead Museum, Farmington, Conn. [W1267]), Grainstacks, Snow Effect (1891; Hill-Stead Museum, Farmington, Conn. [W1274]), andGrainstacks in the Sunlight 1890 (1891; Kunsthaus Zürich [W1288]). The number preceded by a W refers to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  44. Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (cat. 28), Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (cat. 29), Grainstacks in the Morning, Snow Effect (1891; J. Paul Getty Museum [W1276]), Grainstack, Sun in the Mist (1891; Minneapolis Institute of Arts [W1286]), Grainstack in the Sunlight (1891; Kunsthaus Zürich [W1288]), Grainstacks in the Sunlight, Morning Effect (1891; private collection [W1268]), Grainstacks in the Sunlight, Midday (1890; Australian National Gallery, Canberra [W1271]), Grainstacks in Winter (1891; private collection, Switzerland [W1275]), and Grainstack, Sun in the Mist (1891; Minneapolis Institute of Arts [W1286]). The number preceded by a W refers to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  45. Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset) (cat. 32), Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (cat. 30), Stack of Wheat (cat. 31), Grainstacks, White Frost Effect (1891; National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh, 2283 [W1277]), Grainstacks, Winter Effect (1891; Metropolitan Museum of Art, 29.100.109 [W1279]), Grainstack in the Morning, Snow Effect (1891; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts, 1970-253 [W1280]), Grainstack at Sunset, Winter (1891; private collection, Great Britain [W1282]), Grainstack (1891 [W1285]), and Grainstack in the Sunlight, Snow Effect (1891; private collection, France [W1287]). The number preceded by a W refers to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  46. Grainstacks, Last Sunrays (1890; private collection, France [W1272]), Grainstacks (1891; private collection, United States [W1273]), Grainstack at Sunset (1891; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston [W1289]), and Grainstack (1891; private collection, Switzerland [W1290]). The number preceded by a W refers to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  47. Grainstack in the Sunlight (1891; Kunsthaus Zürich [W1288]) is an anomaly in this regard, depicting one large stack viewed so close up that the top of the stack does not fit within the confines of the canvas. The number preceded by a W refers to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  48. Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (cat. 29) and Grainstack, Sun in the Mist (1891; Minneapolis Institute of Arts [W1286]) are aberrations in this group. Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) features two unseparated stacks and Grainstack, Sun in the Mist only depicts one stack. The number preceded by a W refers to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  49. Grainstacks, White Frost Effect (1891; National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh [W1277]) and Grainstacks, Winter Effect (1891; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York [W1279]) deviate from the single stack pattern in this group. Both depict two stacks, one large one overlapping a smaller one behind it. The number preceded by a W refers to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  50. With one exception: Grainstack, Sun in the Mist (1891; Minneapolis Institute of Arts [W1286]). The number preceded by a W refers to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  51. The number preceded by a W refers to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  52. “The extent to which Monet made changes in some of the Haystacks is made clear by close examination of the surface of Grainstacks in the Sunlight, Midday (1890; National Gallery of Australia, Canberra [W1271]). Pentimenti reveal that the smaller haystack was moved from a position between the two haystacks as they appear now; furthermore, the contours of the larger stack were enlarged twice, almost doubling its original size.” In Charles S. Moffett, “Monet’s Haystacks,” in Aspects of Monet: A Symposium on the Artist’s Life and Times, ed. John Rewald and Frances Weitzenhoffer (Abrams, 1984), p. 146. The number preceded by a W refers to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996). While these may not be the only anomalies to the groupings proposed here, this evidence calls for the owners of those exceptional cases to contribute to these theories through their own technical examinations to see if it is possible to determine another facet of just how “programmatic” or not Monet was with this series.
  53. John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1986), p. 216.
  54. This is a difficult concept to assess across all of the Art Institute’s canvases. As mentioned above, in two of the Stacks paintings, Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (cat. 30) and Stack of Wheat (cat. 31), Monet blocked out evidence of an earlier composition by applying a layer of white. This layer would certainly have contributed to the amount of ground (or lack thereof) showing through in the final composition. At some point in its conservation history, the canvas on which Stack of Wheat was painted was mounted to a solid metal support; as such, analysis of the painting with transmitted light is futile.
  55. For further discussion, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert Erdmann, “Thread Count, Weave, and Ground Analysis of Claude Monet’s Vieille & Troisgros/Troisgros Frères Canvases in the Art Institute of Chicago,” in Painting Techniques: History, Materials and Studio Practice (Rijksmuseum, forthcoming). The numbers preceded by a W refer to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  56. For an overview of the materials and methods of Claude Monet’s paintings in the Art Institute of Chicago, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert G. Erdmann, “An In-depth Study of the Materials and Technique of Paintings by Claude Monet from the Art Institute of Chicago,” ICOM-CC 17th Triennial Meeting Preprints,” Melbourne, Sept. 15–19, 2014 (forthcoming).
  57. Using the toolbar at the bottom right, any two images of the painting may be selected for comparison by clicking the layers icon to the right of the slider bar. The slider bar may be moved to transition back and forth between the two chosen images. The jagged line icon brings up a list of available annotations, or colored lines that show the significant features visible in each image, which may be turned on or off in any combination. For example, the red annotation lines, associated with the natural-light image, trace some of the painting’s key compositional features. When overlaid onto a technical image (X-ray, raking light, UV, etc.), the red outlines help the viewer to better observe how features in the technical image relate to or diverge from the painting as seen with the naked eye. (When annotations are turned on, a legend appears in the upper right showing each color and its associated image type.) The circular arrow icon returns the image to the default settings (natural light, full-image view, natural-light [red] annotation on). The four-arrow icon toggles between the view of the image in the page and a full-screen view of the image. In the upper right corner, the vertical slider bar may be moved to zoom into or out of the image; different parts of the image can be accessed by clicking and dragging within the image itself. The icon in the upper left corner opens a small view of the full image, within which a red box indicates the portion of the overall image being viewed when zooming is enabled.
  58. XRF analysis, in conjunction with microscopic examination of the painting surface, indicates that the paint mixture includes vermilion, lead white, and emerald green; there may also be small amounts of red lake and other pigments. See Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stacks_85_1103_XRF_Results,” Aug. 8, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  59. Flax was confirmed by microscopic cross-sectional fiber identification. See Inge Fiedler, “1985_1103_Monet_Analytical_Report,” May 6, 2014, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  60. The stretcher is narrower than the closest standard-size stretcher: no. 40 marine (65 × 100 cm). The individual stretcher bars, however, are standard sizes: the 60 cm height corresponds to a no. 12 stretcher bar; the 100 cm width corresponds to a no. 40 stretcher bar. See, for example, the chart of standard sizes available from Bourgeois Aîné in 1888 which is reproduced in David Bomford, Jo Kirby, John Leighton, and Ashok Roy, Art in the Making: Impressionism, exh. cat. (National Gallery, London/Yale University Press, 1990), p. 46, fig. 31.
  61. Thread count and weave information determined by Thread Count Automation Project software; see Don H. Johnson and Robert G. Erdmann, “Thread Count Report: Claude Monet, Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Summer) (W1269/1985.1103),” Oct. 2011.
  62. This suggests that these canvases were cut from the same bolt of fabric. See Don H. Johnson, “Weave Match Report: Claude Monet, W1231, W1269, W1270, W1278, W1284, W1397, W1475, W1628,” Apr. 2011. For further discussion, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert Erdmann, “Thread Count, Weave, and Ground Analysis of Claude Monet’s Vieille & Troisgros/Troisgros Frères Canvases in the Art Institute of Chicago,” in Painting Techniques: History, Materials and Studio Practice (Rijksmuseum, forthcoming). The numbers preceded by a W refer to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  63. The stronger cusping along the right edge may represent primary cusping related to the attachment of the larger canvas, from which this canvas was cut, to the commercial priming frame (see Ground Application).
  64. The stronger cusping along the right edge may represent primary cusping related to the attachment of the larger roll of canvas, from which this canvas was cut, to the commercial priming frame (see Ground Application).
  65. It is difficult to see whether all of these holes are similar, because some have been subsequently filled with wax-resin lining adhesive and retouching.
  66. The presence of a sizing layer is difficult to determine from cross sections due to previous conservation treatments, including wax-resin lining.
  67. Microfossils were identified by PLM and SEM/EDX. See Inge Fiedler, “1985_1103_Monet_analytical_report,” May 6, 2014.
  68. Traces of magnesium, aluminum, and silicon were detected in association with the calcium particles and are believed to be impurities often associated with the chalk. The ground composition was analyzed using SEM/EDX and XRF. For more detailed results and conditions used, see Inge Fiedler, “1985_1103_Monet_analytical_report,” May 6, 2014; and Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stacks_85_1103_XRF_Results,” Aug. 8, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  69. This hypothesis has not been tested scientifically.
  70. These holes can be caused by a number of different factors. The mixing required to incorporate medium into the paint and even the vigorous working and brushing out of the fluid paint on the canvas are possible explanations.
  71. These areas may have been left somewhat sketchy or unfinished in the original painting. John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1988), p. 171, notes that “Monet’s stepson J.-P. Hoschedé, the staunchest upholder of Monet’s image of always working out of doors, insisted on several occasions that, in the studio, ‘he signed his pictures and painted the edges of his canvases which he tended not to paint right up to their margins.’”
  72. The pigments were identified by the following methods: lead white, cadmium yellow, vermilion, viridian, emerald green, cobalt blue (SEM/EDX, XRF); red lake, ultramarine blue (SEM/EDX). SEM/EDX analysis also indicated the possible presence of chrome yellow. Analysis was carried out on selected areas and may not include all pigments present in the painting. For more detailed results and conditions used, see Inge Fiedler, “1985_1103_Monet_anaytical_report,” May 6, 2014; Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stacks_85_1103_XRF_Results,” Aug. 8, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  73. Identifying the specific type of lake used only by its fluorescence under UV is difficult, as many factors, including the type of substrate, binders, varnishes and admixtures with other pigments, can ultimately affect the perceived color of the fluorescence. Some types of madder and purpurin lake pigments have been reported to fluoresce orange, but other lakes, such as lacs, may fluoresce as well. The characteristics of red lakes, including their fluorescence under UV, are discussed in Helmut Schweppe and John Winter, “Madder and Alizarin,” in Artists’ Pigments: A Handbook of Their History and Characteristics, ed. Elisabeth West FitzHugh, vol. 3 (National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1997), pp. 124–26. See also Ruth Johnston-Feller, Color Science in the Examination of Museum Objects: Nondestructive Procedures (Getty Conservation Institute, 2001), p. 207.
  74. The binding medium was not analyzed. The estimation of an oil medium is based on visual examination, as well as on knowledge of Monet’s technique and published analyses of Monet paintings in other collections. See, for example, David Bomford, Jo Kirby, John Leighton, and Ashok Roy, Art in the Making: Impressionism, exh. cat. (National Gallery, London/Yale University Press, 1990), pp. 72–75.
  75. See Frank Zuccari, treatment report, July 23, 1996, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  76. Kirk Vuillemot, “Monet Frame Descriptions Final,” Dec. 3, 2013, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  77. Kirk Vuillemot, “Monet Frame Descriptions Final,” Dec. 3, 2013, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  78. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book for 1891–1901 (no. 938, as Meules, fin de l’été): “Purchased from Monet by DR Paris on 9 May 1891, for 3 000 F / Stock DR Paris no. 938,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  79. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, Paris, Brouillard for 1888–91 (as Meules, fin de l’été): “Sold on 26 June 1891 to Ch. Fairchilds [sic], 191 Commonwealth Av. Boston, for 5 000 F,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  80. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, Paris, Brouillard for 1888–91 (as Meules, fin de l’été): “Sold on 26 June 1891 to Ch. Fairchilds [sic], 191 Commonwealth Av. Boston, for 5 000 F. Exchanged for another Monet (Wildenstein 755) on 4 August 1891,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. Fairchild exchanged the painting now in the Art Institute’s collection for Sur la falaise à Pourville (1882) now in the Nationalmuseum, Stockholm. See Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 2, Nos. 1–968 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 282–83, cat. 755 (ill.).
  81. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book for 1888–1901 and Brouillard 1888–91 (no. 938, as Meules, fin de l’été): “Sold to Potter Palmer on 4 August 1891 for 6 000 F,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  82. The painting was given to the Art Institute of Chicago in undivided fractional interests beginning in 1985. The Art Institute received the final fractional interest for one hundred precent ownership in 2007.
  83. Confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. In addition to others, this identification was also presented by Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, Peintures, 1887–1898 (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), p. 42, n. 1032; and Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, Peintures, 1887–1898 (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), pp. 138; 139, cat. 1269 (ill.).
  84. According to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 483; 485, cat. 1269 (ill.). It is likely that a label on the verso of the painting corresponds to this exhibition.
  85. The exhibition catalogue does not list dates for the exhibition. For dates see Art Institute of Chicago, “Approaching Exhibitions,” Bulletin of the Art Institute of Chicago 3, 4 (Apr. 1910), p. 51; which lists the original dates as May 10–June 8. A subsequent publication says the exhibition was extended to November; see Art Institute of Chicago, “Announcement: The Art Institute of Chicago: Exhibitions, Lectures, Musicales, Receptions, Etc., for the Season of 1910–11, ”Bulletin of the Art Institute of Chicago 4, 2 (Oct. 1910), p. 23.
  86. An installation view of this painting at the Chicago venue can be found in Anne Rorimer, “The Date Paintings of On Kawara,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 17, 2 (1991), p. 122, fig. 2.
  87. The painting was exhibited but was not included in the exhibition catalogue; see Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture cataloguing card in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  88. The painting was included in the exhibition according to an exhibition checklist, on file in Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.
  89. Confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. In addition to others, this identification was also presented by Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, Peintures, 1887–1898 (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), pp. 138; 139, cat. 1269 (ill.).
  90. The latter was republished as Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Age of French Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Art Institute of Chicago, rev. and expanded ed. (Art Institute of Chicago/Yale University Press, 2010; repr. 2013), pp. 21 (ill.); 22; 113; 119; 172; 173, cat. 88 (ill.).
  91. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  92. See the verso backing board (partial label has been transferred to current backing board).
  93. This label probably corresponds to the exhibition Boston, Copley Society, Loan Collection of Paintings by Claude Monet and Eleven Sculptures by Auguste Rodin, Mar. 1905, cat. 9.
  94. See Don H. Johnson, C. Richard Johnson, Jr., Andrew G. Klein, William A. Sethares, H. Lee, and Ella Hendriks, “A Thread Counting Algorithm for Art Forensics,” 2009 IEEE Thirteenth Digital Signal Processing and Fifth IEEE Signal Processing Education Workshop (IEEE, 2009), pp. 679–84; doi:10.1109/DSP.2009.4786009.
  95. See Damon M. Conover, John K. Delaney, Paola Ricciardi, and Murray H. Loew, “Towards Automatic Registration of Technical Images of Works of Art,” in Computer Vision and Image Analysis of Art II, ed. David G. Stork, James Coddington, and Anna Bentkowska-Kafel, Proc. SPIE 7869 (SPIE/IS&T, 2011), doi:10.1117/12.872634.
  96. For further discussion, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert Erdmann, “Thread Count, Weave, and Ground Analysis of Claude Monet’s Vieille & Troisgros/Troisgros Frères Canvases in the Art Institute of Chicago,” in Painting Techniques: History, Materials and Studio Practice (Rijksmuseum, forthcoming). The numbers preceded by a W refer to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  97. For an overview of the materials and methods of Claude Monet’s paintings in the Art Institute of Chicago, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert G. Erdmann, “An In-depth Study of the Materials and Technique of Paintings by Claude Monet from the Art Institute of Chicago,” ICOM-CC 17th Triennial Meeting Preprints,” Melbourne, Sept. 15–19, 2014 (forthcoming).
  98. Using the toolbar at the bottom right, any two images of the painting may be selected for comparison by clicking the layers icon to the right of the slider bar. The slider bar may be moved to transition back and forth between the two chosen images. The jagged line icon brings up a list of available annotations, or colored lines that show the significant features visible in each image, which may be turned on or off in any combination. For example, the red annotation lines, associated with the natural-light image, trace some of the painting’s key compositional features. When overlaid onto a technical image (X-ray, raking light, UV, etc.), the red outlines help the viewer to better observe how features in the technical image relate to or diverge from the painting as seen with the naked eye. (When annotations are turned on, a legend appears in the upper right showing each color and its associated image type.) The circular arrow icon returns the image to the default settings (natural light, full-image view, natural-light [red] annotation on). The four-arrow icon toggles between the view of the image in the page and a full-screen view of the image. In the upper right corner, the vertical slider bar may be moved to zoom into or out of the image; different parts of the image can be accessed by clicking and dragging within the image itself. The icon in the upper left corner opens a small view of the full image, within which a red box indicates the portion of the overall image being viewed when zooming is enabled.
  99. XRF analysis, in conjunction with microscopic examination of the painting surface, indicates that the paint mixture of the signature includes vermilion, lead white, cadmium yellow, and viridian; emerald green and cobalt blue may also be present in varying proportions in the signature and date. See Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stacks_33_444_XRF_Results,” Aug. 8, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago. PLM analysis detected vermilion, red lake, viridian, lead white, cobalt blue, and chrome yellow in the date. See Inge Fiedler, “1933_444_Monet_PLM_results,” Oct. 24, 2013, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  100. As observed in several other Monet paintings examined for this project, the corners and edges of his canvases were often left in a more sketchy state, with areas of ground left exposed. John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1988), p. 171, notes that “Monet’s stepson J.-P. Hoschedé . . . insisted on several occasions that, in the studio, ‘[Monet] signed his pictures and painted the edges of his canvases which he tended not to paint right up to their margins.’”
  101. Flax was confirmed by microscopic cross-sectional fiber identification. See Inge Fiedler, “1933_444_Monet_analytical_report,” Nov. 25, 2013, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  102. See, for example, the chart of standard sizes available from Bourgeois Aîné in 1888, reproduced in David Bomford, Jo Kirby, John Leighton, and Ashok Roy, Art in the Making: Impressionism, exh. cat. (National Gallery, London/Yale University Press, 1990), p. 46, fig. 31.The original dimensions of the painting were based on a visual estimate of the original foldovers.
  103. Thread count and weave information determined by Thread Count Automation Project software; see Don H. Johnson and Robert G. Erdmann, “Thread Count Report: Claude Monet Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (W1270/1933.444),” Nov. 2011.
  104. This suggests that these canvases were cut from the same bolt of fabric. See Don H. Johnson, “Weave Match Report: Claude Monet, W1231, W1269, W1270, W1278, W1284, W1397, W1475, W1628,” Apr. 2011. For further discussion, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert Erdmann, “Thread Count, Weave, and Ground Analysis of Claude Monet’s Vieille & Troisgros/Troisgros Frères Canvases in the Art Institute of Chicago,” in Painting Techniques: History, Materials and Studio Practice (Rijksmuseum, forthcoming). The numbers preceded by a W refer to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  105. This suggests that some of the cusping on the right edge is primary cusping related to the attachment of the larger roll of fabric from which this canvas was cut to the commercial priming frame (see Ground Application).
  106. The construction and patina suggest that the stretcher may have been original or was added very early in the painting’s lifetime.
  107. See unsigned examination record of auxiliary support, n.d., on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  108. The presence of a sizing layer is difficult to determine from cross sections due to previous conservation treatments, including wax-resin lining.
  109. Microfossils were identified by PLM and SEM/EDX. See Inge Fiedler, “1933_444_Monet_analytical_report,” Nov. 25, 2013.
  110. Traces of magnesium, aluminum, and silicon were detected in association with the calcium particles and are believed to be impurities often associated with the chalk. The ground composition was analyzed using SEM/EDX, PLM, and XRF. For more detailed results and conditions used, see Inge Fiedler, “1933_444_Monet_analytical_report,” Nov. 25, 2013; Inge Fiedler, ‘1933_444_Monet_PLM_results,” Oct. 24, 2013; Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stacks_33_444_XRF_Results,” Aug. 8, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  111. John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1988), p. 171, notes that “Monet’s stepson J.-P. Hoschedé, the staunchest upholder of Monet’s image of always working out of doors, insisted on several occasions that, in the studio, ‘he signed his pictures and painted the edges of his canvases which he tended not to paint right up to their margins.’”
  112. The representation of individual trees along the top of the band of hills, using discrete touches of green and light-purple paint, is unique among the Art Institute Stacks series.
  113. The pigments were identified by the following methods: lead white, cadmium yellow, vermilion, viridian, emerald green, and cobalt blue (PLM, XRF), chrome yellow, red lake, ultramarine blue (PLM). PLM analysis highlighted the presence of pale-red and deeper-red particles of red lake, suggesting that two different types may be present. Paint scraping samples taken in 1975 were reexamined by PLM in 2013. Analysis was carried out on selected areas and may not include all pigments present in the painting. For more detailed results and conditions used, see Inge Fiedler, “1933_444_Monet_analytical_report,” Nov. 25, 2013; Inge Fiedler, “1933_444_Monet_PLM_results,” Oct. 24, 2013; Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stacks_33_444_XRF_Results,” Aug. 8, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  114. Identifying the specific type of lake used only by its fluorescence under UV is difficult, as many factors, including the type of substrate, binders, varnishes and admixtures with other pigments, can ultimately affect the perceived color of the fluorescence. Some types of madder and purpurin lake pigments have been reported to fluoresce orange, but other lakes, such as lacs, may fluoresce as well. The characteristics of red lakes, including their fluorescence under ultraviolet light, are discussed in Helmut Schweppe and John Winter, “Madder and Alizarin,” in Artists’ Pigments: A Handbook of Their History and Characteristics, ed. Elisabeth West FitzHugh, vol. 3 (National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1997), pp. 124–26. See also Ruth Johnston-Feller, Color Science in the Examination of Museum Objects: Nondestructive Procedures (Getty Conservation Institute, 2001), p. 207.
  115. The binding medium was not analyzed. The estimation of an oil medium is based on visual examination, as well as on knowledge of Monet’s technique and published analyses of Monet paintings in other collections. See, for example, David Bomford, Jo Kirby, John Leighton, and Ashok Roy, Art in the Making: Impressionism, exh. cat. (National Gallery, London/Yale University Press, 1990), pp. 72–75.
  116. See Anton Konrad, treatment notes, n.d., on back of unsigned, examination report, Dec. 1959, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  117. See Alfred Jakstas, treatment record, Sept. 9, 1971, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  118. See Alfred Jakstas, treatment record, Aug. 20, 1974, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  119. See Faye Wrubel, treatment record, June 1993, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  120. Kirk Vuillemot, “Monet Frame Descriptions Final,” Dec. 3, 2013, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  121. The transaction is recorded in the Durand–Ruel, Paris, stock book for 1891–1901 (no. 1063, as Meules, fin de l’été), and from Brouillard 1888–1891: “Purchased from Monet by DR Paris on 2nd July 1891, for 3 200 F / Stock DR Paris no. 1063,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 24, 2014, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  122. The transaction is record in the Durand–Ruel, Paris, stock book for 1891–1901 (no. 1063, Meules, fin de l’été), and from Brouillard 1888–1891: “sold to Potter Palmer on the same day (2nd July 1891) for 1 200 dollars = 6 000 F,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 24, 2014, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. The Durand-Archives further states that “there is a discrepancy in our books about the sale of W 1270 to Potter Palmer: we cannot explain it.”
  123. According to Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book 1888–1893 (no. 859, Meules, fin de l’été): “Sold to Potter Palmer on 7th March 1892 for 1 500 dollars / Stock DR New York no. 859 (previous stock DR Paris no. 1063),” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 24, 2014, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. The Durand-Archives further states that “there is a discrepancy in our books about the sale of W 1270 to Potter Palmer: we cannot explain it.”
  124. According to Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book 1888–1893 (no. 859, Meules, fin de l’été): “Sold to Potter Palmer on 7th March 1892 for 1 500 dollars / Stock DR New York no. 859 (previous stock DR Paris no. 1063),” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 24, 2014, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. The Durand-Archives further states that “there is a discrepancy in our books about the sale of W 1270 to Potter Palmer: we cannot explain it.”
  125. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for 1888–93 (no. 924, as Meules, fin de l’été): “Purchased from Potter Palmer by DR New York on (???) / Stock DR New York no. 924 (previous no. 859).” Durand-Ruel, New York Stock Book 1888-1893; as confirmed by see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 24, 2014, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. On April 19, 1892, Durand-Ruel, New York, sold the work to W. C. Van Horne; see following footnote.
  126. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for 1888–93 (no. 924, as Meules, fin de l’été): “Sold to W. C. Van Horne on 19 April 1892 for $ 1 250,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 24, 2014, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. This painting is listed as Van Horne inv. no. 882 in Janet M. Brooke, Discerning Tastes: Montreal Collectors, 1880–1920, exh. cat. (Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, 1989), p. 215.
  127. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for 1888–93 (no. 948, as Meules, fin de l’été): “Purchased from (???) by DR New York on (???) / Stock DR New York no. 948 (previous no. 924),” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 24, 2014, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. On Nov. 22, 1892, Durand-Ruel, New York, sold the work to Potter Palmer; see following footnote.
  128. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for 1888–93 (no. 948, as Meules, fin de l’été): “Sold to Potter Palmer on 22 November 1892 for $1 200,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 24, 2014, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  129. According to Art Institute of Chicago, Exhibition of the Mrs. L. L. Coburn Collection: Modern Paintings and Watercolors, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago, 1932), pp. 19-20, cat. 24.
  130. According to Art Institute of Chicago, Exhibition of the Mrs. L. L. Coburn Collection: Modern Paintings and Watercolors, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago, 1932), pp. 19–20, cat. 24.
  131. According to receipt of object 9523 and Museum Registrar’s department artist’s sheets, both on file in Museum Resitration, Art Institute of Chicago. See also Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture cataloguing card in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  132. Englewood High School was located on 6201 Stewart Avenue, Chicago. See shipping out order 34935, on file in Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago; and receipt of object 9573, on file in Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago.
  133. The exhibition catalogue is printed in Art Institute of Chicago, “Catalogue,” Art Institute of Chicago Quarterly 51, 2 (Apr. 1, 1957), pp. 33–34. Under “Exhibitions” in the same issue, the exhibition dates were listed as April 1–30 (p. 36); however, the show was extended until June 15. See Edith Weigle, “The Wonderful World of Art,” Chicago Daily Tribune, May 26, 1957, p. E2, for an exhibition review and reference to the extension of the length of the show. The April 1957 issue of the Art Institute of Chicago Quarterly was largely dedicated to the Monet works in the Art Institute’s collection. The exhibition marked the first time the Art Institute’s thirty Monet paintings were shown together in the museum.
  134. According to shipping out order B1944, on file in Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago; and receipt of object 22348, on file in Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago.
  135. An installation view of this painting at the Chicago venue can be found in Anne Rorimer, “The Date Paintings of On Kawara,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 17, 2 (1991), p. 122, fig. 2.
  136. The painting was exhibited but was not included in the exhibition catalogue; see Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture cataloguing card in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  137. According to shipping out order C6313, on file Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.
  138. The painting was exhibited but was not included in the exhibition catalogue; see Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture cataloguing card in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  139. Reprinted in Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings in the Art Institute of Chicago: A Catalogue of the Picture Collection (Art Institute of Chicago, 1968), p. 321.
  140. Republished in John Rewald, The History of Impressionism, 4th ed. (Museum of Modern Art, New York/New York Graphic Society, 1973), p. 563 (ill.).
  141. Republished in Diane Kelder, The Great Book of French Impressionism (Artabras, 1997), pp. 164; 191, pl. 186; 389.
  142. The latter was republished as Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Age of French Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Art Institute of Chicago, rev. and expanded ed. (Art Institute of Chicago/Yale University Press, 2010; repr. 2013), pp. 22; 113; 119; 172; 173, cat. 89 (ill.).
  143. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 24, 2014, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  144. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 24, 2014, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  145. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 24, 2014, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  146. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 24, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  147. The label was located on the pre-1974-treatment stretcher (discarded); now preserved in conservation file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  148. The label was located on the pre-1974-treatment stretcher (discarded); now preserved in conservation file, Art Institute of Chicago. The Durand-Ruel Archives confirmed that no. 1145 is a Durand-Ruel New York stock number. SeePaul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 20, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  149. The label was located on the pre-1974-treatment stretcher (discarded); now preserved in conservation file, Art Institute of Chicago. The Durand-Ruel Archives confirmed that no. 853 is a Durand-Ruel New York stock number. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 20, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  150. The inscription was located on the pre-1974-treatment stretcher (discarded); see 1974 photograph in conservation file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  151. The inscription was located on the pre-1974-treatment stretcher (discarded); see 1974 photograph in conservation file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  152. The other Durand-Ruel label appears to have been applied on top of this label on the back of the previous stretcher. The edges of this label can just be seen in the 1974 photograph of the verso. In addition, the exposed edges of this label have significantly discolored compared with the area that was covered by the other label.
  153. See Don H. Johnson, C. Richard Johnson, Jr., Andrew G. Klein, William A. Sethares, H. Lee, and Ella Hendriks, “A Thread Counting Algorithm for Art Forensics,” 2009 IEEE Thirteenth Digital Signal Processing and Fifth IEEE Signal Processing Education Workshop (IEEE, 2009), pp. 679–84; doi:10.1109/DSP.2009.4786009.
  154. See Damon M. Conover, John K. Delaney, Paola Ricciardi, and Murray H. Loew, “Towards Automatic Registration of Technical Images of Works of Art,” in Computer Vision and Image Analysis of Art II, ed. David G. Stork, James Coddington, and Anna Bentkowska-Kafel, Proc. SPIE 7869 (SPIE/IS&T, 2011), doi:10.1117/12.872634.
  155. For further discussion, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert Erdmann, “Thread Count, Weave, and Ground Analysis of Claude Monet’s Vieille & Troisgros/Troisgros Frères Canvases in the Art Institute of Chicago,” in Painting Techniques: History, Materials and Studio Practice (Rijksmuseum, forthcoming). The numbers preceded by a W refer to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  156. Using the toolbar at the bottom right, any two images of the painting may be selected for comparison by clicking the layers icon to the right of the slider bar. The slider bar may be moved to transition back and forth between the two chosen images. The jagged line icon brings up a list of available annotations, or colored lines that show the significant features visible in each image, which may be turned on or off in any combination. For example, the red annotation lines, associated with the natural-light image, trace some of the painting’s key compositional features. When overlaid onto a technical image (X-ray, raking light, UV, etc.), the red outlines help the viewer to better observe how features in the technical image relate to or diverge from the painting as seen with the naked eye. (When annotations are turned on, a legend appears in the upper right showing each color and its associated image type.) The circular arrow icon returns the image to the default settings (natural light, full-image view, natural-light [red] annotation on). The four-arrow icon toggles between the view of the image in the page and a full-screen view of the image. In the upper right corner, the vertical slider bar may be moved to zoom into or out of the image; different parts of the image can be accessed by clicking and dragging within the image itself. The icon in the upper left corner opens a small view of the full image, within which a red box indicates the portion of the overall image being viewed when zooming is enabled.
  157. PLM and XRF analysis indicate that the reddish-brown paint mixture contains vermilion, red lake, ultramarine blue, lead white, cadmium yellow, and viridian; and that the greenish-brown paint mixture contains lead white, vermilion, red lake, cobalt blue, ultramarine blue, cadmium yellow, and viridian. Other pigments may also be present. See Inge Fiedler, “1922_431_Monet_PLM_results,” Dec. 17, 2013; and Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stacks_22_431_XRF_Results,” Aug. 9, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  158. The first number of the earlier date looks like a 9; the second number is more obscured, but could be a 1. The repainting of the date could have been a function of Monet “finishing” the corner rather than making any kind of deliberate change to the original date. As observed in several other Monet paintings examined for this project, the corners and edges of his canvases were often left in a more sketchy state, with areas of ground left exposed. John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1988), p. 171, notes that “Monet’s stepson J.-P. Hoschedé . . . insisted on several occasions that, in the studio, ‘[Monet] signed his pictures and painted the edges of his canvases which he tended not to paint right up to their margins.’”
  159. Flax was confirmed by microscopic cross-sectional fiber identification. See Inge Fiedler, “1922_431_Monet_analytical_report,” Dec. 19, 2013, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  160. See, for example, the chart of standard sizes available from Bourgeois Aîné in 1888, reproduced in David Bomford, Jo Kirby, John Leighton, and Ashok Roy, Art in the Making: Impressionism, exh. cat. (National Gallery, London/Yale University Press, 1990), p. 46, fig. 31. The original dimensions of the painting were based on a visual estimate of the original foldovers.
  161. Thread count and weave information determined by Thread Count Automation Project software; see Don H. Johnson and Robert G. Erdmann, “Thread Count Report: Claude Monet Stacks of Wheat (Sunset, Snow Effect) (W1278/1922.431),” Nov. 2011.
  162. This suggests that these canvases were cut from the same bolt of fabric. See Don H. Johnson, “Weave Match Report: Claude Monet, W1231, W1269, W1270, W1278, W1284, W1397, W1475, W1628,” Apr. 2011. For further discussion, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert Erdmann, “Thread Count, Weave, and Ground Analysis of Claude Monet’s Vieille & Troisgros/Troisgros Frères Canvases in the Art Institute of Chicago,” in Painting Techniques: History, Materials and Studio Practice (Rijksmuseum, forthcoming). The numbers preceded by a W refer to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  163. See Inge Fiedler, “1922_431_Monet_analytical_report,” Dec. 19, 2014, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  164. The presence of early dealer labels (including Durand-Ruel) on the previous stretcher suggests that the stretcher may have been original or was added very early in the painting’s lifetime (see Labels and Inscriptions).
  165. See Anton Konrad, examination report, Nov. 9, 1959, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  166. See notes on back of Anton Konrad, examination report, Nov. 9, 1959, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago. The stamp is undoubtedly from the color merchant Troisgros Frères, which operated at this address in 1888–99, according to Stéphanie Constantin, “The Barbizon Painters: A Guide to Their Suppliers,” Studies in Conservation 46, 1 (2001), pp. 49–67. Given that stamps from Troisgros Frères and its predecessor Vieille & Troisgros were documented on the back of the canvas of several other Art Institute Monet paintings, and in the absence of any photodocumentation, it should perhaps be questioned whether this stamp was actually on the stretcher, or whether it may have been on the canvas, the distinction not having been made when it was transcribed along with the labels from the stretcher. The canvas was lined in 1968 (see Conservation History); no evidence of a canvas stamp was observed when the painting was viewed with transmitted light.
  167. See Inge Fiedler, “1922_431_Monet_analytical_report,” Dec. 19, 2014, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  168. Traces of magnesium, aluminum, and silicon were detected in association with the calcium particles and are believed to be impurities often associated with the chalk. The ground composition was analyzed using SEM/EDX and XRF. For more detailed results and conditions used, see Inge Fiedler, “1922_431_Monet_analytical_report,” Dec. 19, 2013; Inge Fiedler, “1922_431_Monet_PLM_results,” Dec. 17, 2013; Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stacks_22_431_XRF_Results,” Aug. 9, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  169. This variation in paint consistency suggests that Monet was modifying his paints by adding extra medium to achieve different degrees of fluidity. Bubble holes were observed throughout the paint layers, which can be related to mixing of the paints, for example, when incorporating medium or solvent. This hypothesis was not investigated scientifically.
  170. This earlier arrangement may have been somewhat similar to the composition of Stacks of Wheat (End of Day, Autumn) (1890/91; 1933.444 [W1270]), which was also painted on a no. 40 seascape (marine) canvas. The number preceded by a W refers to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  171. This perhaps provides tangible evidence of Monet having worked on the painting outdoors. Similar plant matter was also observed embedded in the paint layers of Poppy Field, Giverny (1891; 1922.4465 [W1253]) and The Customs House at Varengeville (1897; 1933.1149 [W1455/]). The numbers preceded by a W refer to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  172. The pigments were identified by the following methods: lead white, cadmium yellow, vermilion, viridian, and cobalt blue (PLM, XRF), chrome yellow, red lake, and ultramarine blue (PLM). PLM analysis highlighted the presence of pale-red and deeper-red particles of red lake, suggesting that two different types may be present. Analysis was carried out on selected areas and may not include all pigments present in the painting. For more detailed results and conditions used, see Inge Fiedler, “1922_431_Monet_analytical_report,” Dec. 19, 2013; Inge Fiedler, “1922_431_Monet_PLM_results,” Dec. 17, 2013; and Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stacks_22_431_XRF_Results,” Aug. 9, 2011; on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  173. Identifying the specific type of lake used only by its fluorescence under UV is difficult, as many factors—including the type of substrate, binders, varnishes, and admixtures with other pigments—can ultimately affect the perceived color of the fluorescence. Some types of madder and purpurin lake pigments have been reported to fluoresce orange, but other lakes, such as lacs, may fluoresce as well. The characteristics of red lakes, including their fluorescence under UV, are discussed in Helmut Schweppe and John Winter, “Madder and Alizarin,” in Artists’ Pigments: A Handbook of Their History and Characteristics, ed. Elisabeth West FitzHugh, vol. 3 (National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1997), pp. 124–26. See also Ruth Johnston-Feller, Color Science in the Examination of Museum Objects: Nondestructive Procedures (Getty Conservation Institute, 2001), p. 207.
  174. The binding medium was not analyzed. The estimation of an oil medium is based on visual examination, as well as on knowledge of Monet’s technique and published analyses of Monet paintings in other collections. See, for example, David Bomford, Jo Kirby, John Leighton, and Ashok Roy, Art in the Making: Impressionism, exh. cat. (National Gallery, London/Yale University Press, 1990), pp. 72–75.
  175. See interdepartmental correspondence, n.d., “on list = Pictures from The Potter Palmer Collection cleaned and varnished by Hammond Smith April 20, 1922,” on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  176. See interdepartmental correspondence, n.d., “on list = Pictures from The Potter Palmer Collection cleaned and varnished by Hammond Smith April 20, 1922,” on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  177. See index card dated Aug. 19, 1954, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  178. See notes on back of Anton Konrad, examination report, Nov. 9, 1959, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  179. See Alfred Jakstas, treatment report, Aug. 15, 1968, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  180. See Faye Wrubel, treatment report, Sept. 1992, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  181. Kirk Vuillemot, “Monet Frame Descriptions Final,” Dec. 3, 2013, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  182. See loan request, n.d. (but approved June 1969), on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  183. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book for 1891–1901 (no. 1075, as Meules, effet de neige, soleil couchant): “Purchased from Monet by DR Paris on 20 July 1891 for 3 200 F / Stock DR Paris no. 1075; photo no. 220,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  184. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book for 1891–1901 (no. 1075, as Meules, effet de neige, soleil couchant): “Sold to DR New York on 30 October 1891.” The transaction is also recorded in the Durand–Ruel, New York, stock book for 1888–1893 (no. 847, as Meules, effet de neige, soleil couchant): “Purchased by DR New York in (???),” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  185. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for 1888–1893 (no. 847, as Meules, effet de neige, soleil couchant): “Stock DR New York no. 847 / Sold to Potter Palmer on 29 February 1892 for $13 000,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  186. This painting was on loan from the Palmer family to the Art Institute of Chicago, intermittently, by 1921, according to Museum Registration department artists sheets, on file in Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago.
  187. Exhibition information was confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  188. Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), p. 489, cat. 1278. It is possible that a label preserved in the conservation file corresponds to this exhibition.
  189. The exhibition catalogue does not list dates for the exhibition. For dates, see Art Institute of Chicago, “Approaching Exhibitions,” Bulletin of the Art Institute of Chicago 3, 4 (Apr. 1910), p. 51; which lists the original dates as May 10–June 8. A subsequent publication says the exhibition was extended to November; see Art Institute of Chicago, “Announcement: The Art Institute of Chicago: Exhibitions, Lectures, Musicales, Receptions, Etc., for the Season of 1910–11,” Bulletin of the Art Institute of Chicago 4, 2 (Oct. 1910), p. 23.
  190. According to shipping order A3049, and a schedule of the circuit exhibition on American Federation of Arts letterhead, both on file Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago. “Calendar,” Vassar Miscellany News, Dec. 1, 1954, p. 3, states that the exhibition was held through Nov. 30.
  191. According to a schedule of the circuit exhibition on American Federation of Arts letterhead, on file Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.
  192. See “Claude Monet Painting to be Shown at Gibbes Art Gallery,” News and Courier, Charleston, S. C., Sunday Morning, Dec. 26, 1954, p. Ten–B (ill.); and a schedule of the circuit exhibition on American Federation of Arts letterhead, on file Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.
  193. See news clipping, photocopy in curatorial file, Art Institute of Chicago; and a schedule of the circuit exhibition on American Federation of Arts letterhead, on file Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.
  194. According to a schedule of the circuit exhibition on American Federation of Arts letterhead, on file Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.
  195. “April Picture of the Month,” J. B. Speed Art Museum Bulletin 16, 4 (Apr. 1955), p. 6 (ill.). See also a schedule of the circuit exhibition on American Federation of Arts letterhead, on file Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.
  196. According to receipt of object 14582, on file in Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago. See also a schedule of the circuit exhibition on American Federation of Arts letterhead, on file Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.
  197. According to shipping out order A4298, on file in Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago; and receipt of object 14851, on file in Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago.
  198. The exhibition catalogue is printed in Art Institute of Chicago, “Catalogue,” Art Institute of Chicago Quarterly 51, 2 (Apr. 1, 1957), pp. 33–34. Under “Exhibitions” in the same issue, the original exhibition dates were listed as April 1–30 (p. 36); however, the show was extended until June 15. See Edith Weigle, “The Wonderful World of Art,” Chicago Daily Tribune, May 26, 1957, p. E2, for an exhibition review and reference to the extension of the length of the show. The April 1957 issue of the Art Institute of Chicago Quarterly was largely dedicated to the Monet works in the Art Institute’s collection. The exhibition marked the first time the Art Institute’s thirty Monet paintings were shown together in the museum.
  199. The painting was included in the exhibition according to shipping order B6209, on file in Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago; and receipt of object 26295, on file Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago.
  200. An installation view of this painting at the Chicago venue can be found in Anne Rorimer, “The Date Paintings of On Kawara,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 17, 2 (1991), p. 122, fig. 2.
  201. The painting was exhibited but was not included in the exhibition catalogue; see Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture cataloguing card in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  202. The painting was included in the exhibition according to an exhibition checklist, on file in Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago.
  203. The painting was included in the exhibition according to receipt of object 44627, on file in Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago.
  204. The publication accompanying the exhibition is Eik Kahng, ed. The Repeating Image: Multiples in French Painting from David to Matisse, exh. cat. (Walters Art Museum/Yale University Press, 2007).
  205. Originally published as Birgit Zeidler, Claude Monet: Leben und Werk (Könemann, 1998).
  206. The latter was republished as Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Age of French Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Art Institute of Chicago, rev. and expanded ed. (Art Institute of Chicago/Yale University Press, 2010; repr. 2013), pp. 13; 22; 113; 119; 172; 174, cat. 90 (ill.).
  207. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 20, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  208. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 20, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  209. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  210. The label was located on the pre-1968-treatment stretcher (discarded), now preserved in conservation file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  211. The label was located on the pre-1968-treatment stretcher (discarded), now preserved in conservation file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  212. See notes on back of Anton Konrad, examination report, Nov. 9, 1959, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago. The stamp is undoubtedly from the color merchant Troisgros Frères, which operated at this address from 1888 to 1899, according to Stéphanie Constantin, “The Barbizon Painters: A Guide to Their Suppliers,” Studies in Conservation 46, 1 (2001), pp. 49–67. Given that stamps from Troisgros Frères and its predecessor Vieille & Troisgros were documented on the back of the canvas of several other Art Institute Monet paintings, and in the absence of any photodocumentation, it should perhaps be questioned whether this stamp was actually on the stretcher, or whether it may have been on the canvas, the distinction not having been made when it was transcribed along with the labels from the stretcher. The canvas was lined in 1968; no evidence of a canvas stamp was observed when the painting was viewed with transmitted light.
  213. This label probably corresponds to the Copley Society, Boston, exhibition, Loan Collection of Paintings by Claude Monet and Eleven Sculptures by Auguste Rodin, Mar. 1905.
  214. See Don H. Johnson, C. Richard Johnson, Jr., Andrew G. Klein, William A. Sethares, H. Lee, and Ella Hendriks, “A Thread Counting Algorithm for Art Forensics,” 2009 IEEE Thirteenth Digital Signal Processing and Fifth IEEE Signal Processing Education Workshop (IEEE, 2009), pp. 679–84; doi:10.1109/DSP.2009.4786009.
  215. See Damon M. Conover, John K. Delaney, Paola Ricciardi, and Murray H. Loew, “Towards Automatic Registration of Technical Images of Works of Art,” in Computer Vision and Image Analysis of Art II, ed. David G. Stork, James Coddington, and Anna Bentkowska-Kafel, Proc. SPIE 7869 (SPIE/IS&T, 2011), doi:10.1117/12.872634.
  216. For further discussion, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert Erdmann, “Thread Count, Weave, and Ground Analysis of Claude Monet’s Vieille & Troisgros/Troisgros Frères Canvases in the Art Institute of Chicago,” in Painting Techniques: History, Materials and Studio Practice (Rijksmuseum, forthcoming). The numbers preceded by a W refer to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  217. For an overview of the materials and methods of Claude Monet’s paintings in the Art Institute of Chicago, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert G. Erdmann, “An In-depth Study of the Materials and Technique of Paintings by Claude Monet from the Art Institute of Chicago,” ICOM-CC 17th Triennial Meeting Preprints, Melbourne, Sept. 15–19, 2014 (forthcoming).
  218. Using the toolbar at the bottom right, any two images of the painting may be selected for comparison by clicking the layers icon to the right of the slider bar. The slider bar may be moved to transition back and forth between the two chosen images. The jagged line icon brings up a list of available annotations, or colored lines that show the significant features visible in each image, which may be turned on or off in any combination. For example, the red annotation lines, associated with the natural-light image, trace some of the painting’s key compositional features. When overlaid onto a technical image (X-ray, raking light, UV, etc.), the red outlines help the viewer to better observe how features in the technical image relate to or diverge from the painting as seen with the naked eye. (When annotations are turned on, a legend appears in the upper right showing each color and its associated image type.) The circular arrow icon returns the image to the default settings (natural light, full-image view, natural-light [red] annotation on). The four-arrow icon toggles between the view of the image in the page and a full-screen view of the image. In the upper right corner, the vertical slider bar may be moved to zoom into or out of the image; different parts of the image can be accessed by clicking and dragging within the image itself. The icon in the upper left corner opens a small view of the full image, within which a red box indicates the portion of the overall image being viewed when zooming is enabled.
  219. XRF analysis, in conjunction with microscopic examination, indicates that the paint mixture includes lead white, cadmium yellow, vermilion, viridian, and cobalt blue; other pigments may also be present in the mixture. See Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stack_33_1155_XRF_Results,” Aug. 9, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  220. As observed in several other Monet paintings examined for this project, the corners and edges of his canvases were often left in a more sketchy state, with areas of ground left exposed. John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1988), p. 171, notes that “Monet’s stepson J.-P. Hoschedé … insisted on several occasions that, in the studio, ‘[Monet] signed his pictures and painted the edges of his canvases which he tended not to paint right up to their margins.’”
  221. Flax was confirmed by microscopic cross-sectional fiber identification. See Inge Fiedler, “1933_1155_Monet_analytical_report,” May 13, 2014, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  222. See, for example, the chart of standard sizes available from Bourgeois Aîné in 1888, reproduced in David Bomford, Jo Kirby, John Leighton, and Ashok Roy, Art in the Making: Impressionism, exh. cat. (National Gallery, London/Yale University Press, 1990), p. 46, fig. 31. The original dimensions of the painting were based on a visual estimate of the original foldovers.
  223. Thread count and weave information determined by Thread Count Automation Project software; see Don H. Johnson and Robert G. Erdmann, “Thread Count Report: Claude Monet Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (W1281/1933.1155),” Nov. 2011.
  224. This suggests that these canvases were cut from the same bolt of fabric. See Don H. Johnson, “Weave Match Report: Claude Monet, W1281, W1455, W1527,” Apr. 2011. For further discussion, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert Erdmann, “Thread Count, Weave, and Ground Analysis of Claude Monet’s Vieille & Troisgros/Troisgros Frères Canvases in the Art Institute of Chicago,” in Painting Techniques: History, Materials and Studio Practice (Rijksmuseum, forthcoming). The numbers preceded by a W refer to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  225. The more pronounced cusping on the top edge is probably primary cusping related to the attachment of the larger roll of fabric (from which this canvas was cut) to the commercial priming frame (see Ground Application/Texture).
  226. The presence of a Durand-Ruel label suggests that the stretcher was either original or was added early in the painting’s lifetime.
  227. See Alfred Jakstas, treatment report, Aug. 26, 1969, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  228. The presence of a sizing layer is difficult to determine from cross sections due to previous conservation treatments, including wax-resin lining.
  229. Microfossils were identified by PLM and SEM/EDX. See Inge Fiedler, “1933_1155_Monet_analytical_report,” May 13, 2014.
  230. Traces of magnesium, aluminum, and silicon were detected in association with the calcium particles and are believed to be impurities often associated with the chalk. The ground composition was analyzed using SEM/EDX, PLM, and XRF. For more detailed results and conditions used, see Inge Fiedler, “1933_1155_Monet_analytical_report,” May 13, 2014; Inge Fiedler, “1933_1155_Monet_PLM_results,” Jan. 28, 2014; Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stacks_33_1155_XRF_Results,” Aug. 9, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  231. A similar change in palette was observed in Stack of Wheat (cat. 31 [W1283], inv. 1983.29), where passages of bright green and red paint were observed underneath the snowy landscape as well as bright blue underlayers in the sky.
  232. The copper and arsenic from the underlying green paint was probably not detected in spectra collected from the surface of the painting because of the lead white–rich layer that was broadly applied on top of the earlier composition. It should be noted, however, that spectra were collected from select areas of the painting and it cannot be ruled out that emerald green could be present in areas of the final painting that were not analyzed. Green areas related to the final painting that were analyzed were found to contain viridian (a green pigment that contains chromium). See Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stack_33_1155_XRF_Results,” Aug. 9, 2011; Inge Fiedler, “1933_1155_Monet_PLM_results,” Jan. 28, 2014, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  233. The pigments were identified by the following methods: lead white, cadmium yellow, vermilion, viridian, emerald green, cobalt blue (PLM, XRF); chrome yellow, red lake, ultramarine blue (PLM). Emerald green was detected only in paint layers that appear to be associated with the earlier composition. PLM analysis highlighted the presence of pale-red and deeper-red particles of red lake, suggesting that two different types may be present. Paint scraping samples taken in 1977 were reexamined by PLM in 2013. Analysis was carried out on selected areas and may not include all pigments present in the painting. For more detailed results and conditions used, see Inge Fiedler, “1933_1155_Monet_analytical_report,” May 13, 2014; Inge Fiedler, “1933_1155_Monet_PLM_results,” Jan. 28, 2014; Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stack_33_1155_XRF_Results,” Aug. 9, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  234. Identifying the specific type of lake used only by its fluorescence under UV is difficult, as many factors, including the type of substrate, binders, varnishes and admixtures with other pigments, can ultimately affect the perceived color of the fluorescence. Some types of madder and purpurin lake pigments have been reported to fluoresce orange, but other lakes, such as lacs, may fluoresce as well. The characteristics of red lakes, including their fluorescence under ultraviolet light, are discussed in Helmut Schweppe and John Winter, “Madder and Alizarin,” in Artists’ Pigments: A Handbook of Their History and Characteristics, ed. Elisabeth West FitzHugh, vol. 3 (National Gallery of Art, Washignton, D.C., 1997), pp. 124–26. See also Ruth Johnston-Feller, Color Science in the Examination of Museum Objects: Nondestructive Procedures (Getty Conservation Institute, 2001), p. 207.
  235. The binding medium was not analyzed. The estimation of an oil medium is based on visual examination, as well as on knowledge of Monet’s technique and published analyses of Monet paintings in other collections. See, for example, David Bomford, Jo Kirby, John Leighton, and Ashok Roy, Art in the Making: Impressionism, exh. cat. (National Gallery, London/Yale University Press, 1990), pp. 72–75.
  236. See Alfred Jakstas, treatment report, Aug. 26, 1969, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  237. See Alfred Jakstas, treatment report, Aug. 26, 1969, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  238. See Frank Zuccari, treatment report, Sept. 12, 1991, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  239. Kirk Vuillemot, “Monet Frame Descriptions Final,” Dec. 3, 2013, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  240. Kirk Vuillemot, “Monet Frame Descriptions Final,” Dec. 3, 2013, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  241. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book for 1891–1901 (no. 942, as Les Meules, effet de neige, temps couvert): “Purchased from Monet by DR Paris on 9 May 1891 for 2 500 F / Stock DR Paris no. 942; photo no. 219” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  242. The Paris and New York Durand-Ruel stock books record different dates for the sale. The Paris stock book for 1891–1901 (no. 942, as Les Meules, effet de neige, temps couvert) states: “Sold to DR New York on 25 October 1892.” The New York stock book for 1888–1893 (no. 976, as Meules, effet de neige) states: “Purchased by DR New York on 16 November 1892 as Meules, effet de neige / Stock DR New York no. 976.” See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  243. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for 1888–93 (no. 976, as Meules, effet de neige): “sold to Martin Ryerson on 31 March 1893 for $ 1500,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. A purchase receipt on Durand-Ruel letterhead, dated April 12, 1893, includes this painting as one of several sold by Durand-Ruel, New York, to M. A. Ryerson. Photocopy in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. This purchase receipt is also illustrated in David Spence, Monet: Impressionism (Ticktock, 1997), p. 27. This painting was on loan from Martin A. Ryerson to the Art Institute of Chicago, intermittently, by 1921, according to Museum Registration department artists sheets, on file in Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago.
  244. Confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. In addition to others, this identification is also presented by Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, Peintures, 1887–1898 (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), p. 42, n. 1032; and Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, Peintures, 1887–1898 (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), p. 142, cat. 1281.
  245. The exhibition catalogue lists the dates as June 1–Nov. 1, 1934, but newspaper articles confirm the exhibition closed on October 31. See “Fair Art Exhibition Closes Forever at 5:30 This Afternoon,” Chicago Daily Tribune, Oct. 31, 1934, p. 2; and “Shippers Start Dismantling Art Exhibition Today,” Chicago Daily Tribune, Nov. 1, 1934, p. 3.
  246. Archival documents indicate that the objects sent for exhibition at the Decatur Art Center were probably directly shipped to the Springfield Art Association. See Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture cataloguing card, photocopy in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. See also shipping out order 34937, on file in Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago; and receipt of object 9662, and Museum Registration Department Artists Sheets; both on file in Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago.The shipping out order states that the Springfield Art Association exhibition was scheduled to last the month of April.
  247. Remington Rand was located at 444 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago. See shipping out order A1107, on file in Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago; receipt of object 12931, on file in Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago.
  248. According to shipping order A690, on file in Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago; and receipt of objects 13266, on file in Museum Registration Art Institute of Chicago.
  249. According to shipping out order A4298, on file in Institutional Archives, Art Institute of Chicago; and receipt of object 14851, on file in Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago. Exhibition dates are noted on the shipping out order.
  250. The exhibition catalogue is printed in Art Institute of Chicago, “Catalogue,” Art Institute of Chicago Quarterly 51, 2 (Apr. 1, 1957), pp. 33–34. Under “Exhibitions” in the same issue, the exhibition dates were listed as April 1–30 (p. 36); however, the show was extended until June 15. See Edith Weigle, “The Wonderful World of Art,” Chicago Daily Tribune, May 26, 1957, p. E2, for an exhibition review and reference to the extension of the length of the show. The April 1957 issue of the Art Institute of Chicago Quarterly was largely dedicated to the Monet works in the Art Institute’s collection. The exhibition marked the first time the Art Institute’s thirty Monet paintings were shown together in the museum.
  251. An installation view of this painting at the Chicago venue can be found in Anne Rorimer, “The Date Paintings of On Kawara,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 17, 2 (1991), p. 122, fig. 2.
  252. Confirmed by the Durand-Ruel Archives; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. In addition to others, this identification is also presented by Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, Peintures, 1887–1898 (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), p. 42, n. 1032; and Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Biographie et catalogue raisonné, vol. 3, Peintures, 1887–1898 (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1979), p. 142, cat. 1281.
  253. Reprinted in Art Institute of Chicago, Paintings in the Art Institute of Chicago: A Catalogue of the Picture Collection (Art Institute of Chicago, 1968), p. 320.
  254. The incorrect Stack of Wheat painting is illustrated on this page, but the discussion refers to the Art Institute’s painting.
  255. The latter was republished as Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Age of French Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Art Institute of Chicago, rev. and expanded ed. (Art Institute of Chicago/Yale University Press, 2010; repr. 2013), pp. 22; 113; 119; 172; 174, cat. 91 (ill.).
  256. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  257. Durand-Ruel to M. A. Ryerson, April 12, 1893. Photocopy in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. Also confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 20, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  258. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object.
  259. Confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  260. This label is related to a different Monet painting, The Customs House at Varengeville Varengeville (cat. 35 [W1455], inv. 1933.1149), and was probably erroneously attached to the backing board of this painting.
  261. See Don H. Johnson, C. Richard Johnson, Jr., Andrew G. Klein, William A. Sethares, H. Lee, and Ella Hendriks, “A Thread Counting Algorithm for Art Forensics,” 2009 IEEE Thirteenth Digital Signal Processing and Fifth IEEE Signal Processing Education Workshop (IEEE, 2009), pp. 679–84; doi:10.1109/DSP.2009.4786009.
  262. See Damon M. Conover, John K. Delaney, Paola Ricciardi, and Murray H. Loew, “Towards Automatic Registration of Technical Images of Works of Art,” in Computer Vision and Image Analysis of Art II, ed. David G. Stork, James Coddington, and Anna Bentkowska-Kafel, Proc. SPIE 7869 (SPIE/IS&T, 2011), doi:10.1117/12.872634.
  263. For an overview of the materials and methods of Claude Monet’s paintings in the Art Institute of Chicago, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert G. Erdmann, “An In-depth Study of the Materials and Technique of Paintings by Claude Monet from the Art Institute of Chicago,” ICOM-CC 17th Triennial Meeting Preprints, Melbourne, Sept. 15–19, 2014 (forthcoming).
  264. Using the toolbar at the bottom right, any two images of the painting may be selected for comparison by clicking the layers icon to the right of the slider bar. The slider bar may be moved to transition back and forth between the two chosen images. The jagged line icon brings up a list of available annotations, or colored lines that show the significant features visible in each image, which may be turned on or off in any combination. For example, the red annotation lines, associated with the natural-light image, trace some of the painting’s key compositional features. When overlaid onto a technical image (X-ray, raking light, UV, etc.), the red outlines help the viewer to better observe how features in the technical image relate to or diverge from the painting as seen with the naked eye. (When annotations are turned on, a legend appears in the upper right showing each color and its associated image type.) The circular arrow icon returns the image to the default settings (natural light, full-image view, natural-light [red] annotation on). The four-arrow icon toggles between the view of the image in the page and a full-screen view of the image. In the upper right corner, the vertical slider bar may be moved to zoom into or out of the image; different parts of the image can be accessed by clicking and dragging within the image itself. The icon in the upper left corner opens a small view of the full image, within which a red box indicates the portion of the overall image being viewed when zooming is enabled.
  265. The paint mixture, which includes reddish-brown, green, and yellow paint, is incompletely mixed and varies across the signature and date. XRF analysis, in conjunction with microscopic examination, indicates that the paint mixtures include vermilion, lead white, cadmium yellow, cobalt blue, and viridian; other pigments may also be present in the mixture. See Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stack_83_29_XRF_Results,” Dec. 8, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  266. As observed in several other Monet paintings examined for this project, the corners and edges of his canvases were often left in a more sketchy state, with areas of ground left exposed. John House, Monet: Nature into Art (Yale University Press, 1988), p. 171, notes that “Monet’s stepson J.-P. Hoschedé . . . insisted on several occasions that, in the studio, ‘[Monet] signed his pictures and painted the edges of his canvases which he tended not to paint right up to their margins.’”
  267. The tacking edges were removed in a conservation treatment carried out prior to the acquisition of the painting. The canvas fibers were not sampled.
  268. See, for example, the chart of standard sizes available from Bourgeois Aîné in 1888, reproduced in David Bomford, Jo Kirby, John Leighton, and Ashok Roy, Art in the Making: Impressionism, exh. cat. (National Gallery, London/Yale University Press, 1990), p. 46, fig. 31. The original dimensions of the painting were estimated from the edges of the painted composition.
  269. Thread count and weave information determined by Thread Count Automation Project software; see Don H. Johnson and Robert G. Erdmann, “Thread Count Report: Claude Monet Stack of Wheat (W1283/1983.29),” Nov. 2011.
  270. The metal panel was found by XRF to contain zinc and copper, possibly brass or a zinc-plated copper; see Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stack_83_29_XRF_Results,” Dec. 8, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  271. The presence of a sizing layer is difficult to determine from cross sections due to previous conservation treatments.
  272. Traces of magnesium, aluminum, and silicon were detected in association with the calcium particles and are believed to be impurities often associated with the chalk. >The ground composition was analyzed using SEM/EDX and XRF. For more detailed results and conditions used, see Inge Fiedler, “1983_29_Monet_analytical_report,” May 19, 2014; Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stack_83_29_XRF_Results,” Dec. 8, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  273. The intermediate white layer was found to contain a mixture of zinc white and lead white; see Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stack_83_29_XRF_Results,” Dec. 8, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago. Since the brushstrokes related to the intermediate layer appear somewhat opaque in the X-ray, this may indicate that the paint used was a mixture of zinc white and lead white.
  274. The bright reds and greens in the foreground of Stack of Wheat are reminiscent of the palette used in Poppy Field (Giverny) (cat. 26 [W1253], inv. 1922.4465). A similar change in palette was observed in Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (cat. 30 [W1281], inv. 1933.1155). The numbers preceded by a W refer to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  275. Furthermore, it was not possible to study the painting with transmitted light or transmitted infrared because it has been mounted onto a metal panel (see Conservation History).
  276. Zinc white appears to be limited to the intermediate layer applied over the earlier composition. See Inge Fiedler, “1983_29_Monet_analytical_report,” May 19, 2014; Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stack_83_29_XRF_Results,” Dec. 8, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  277. The pigments were identified by the following methods: lead white, zinc white, cadmium yellow, iron oxide, vermilion, viridian, emerald green, and cobalt blue (SEM/EDX, XRF), chrome yellow, red lake, ultramarine blue (SEM/EDX). SEM/EDX analysis indicates that the red lake was precipitated on a substrate that contains aluminum and possibly sulfur. Analysis was carried out on selected areas and may not include all pigments present in the painting. For more detailed results and conditions used, see Inge Fiedler, “1983_29_Monet_analytical_report,” May 19, 2014; Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stack_83_29_XRF_Results,” Dec. 8, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  278. Identifying the specific type of lake used only by its fluorescence under UV is difficult, as many factors, including the type of substrate, binders, varnishes and admixtures with other pigments, can ultimately affect the perceived color of the fluorescence. Some types of madder and purpurin lake pigments have been reported to fluoresce orange, but other lakes, such as lacs, may fluoresce as well. The characteristics of red lakes, including their fluorescence under ultraviolet light, are discussed in Helmut Schweppe and John Winter, “Madder and Alizarin,” in Artists’ Pigments: A Handbook of Their History and Characteristics, ed. Elisabeth West FitzHugh, vol. 3 (National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1997), pp. 124–26. See also Ruth Johnston-Feller, Color Science in the Examination of Museum Objects: Nondestructive Procedures (Getty Conservation Institute, 2001), p. 207.
  279. The binding medium was not analyzed. The estimation of an oil medium is based on visual examination, as well as on knowledge of Monet’s technique and published analyses of Monet paintings in other collections. See, for example, David Bomford, Jo Kirby, John Leighton, and Ashok Roy, Art in the Making: Impressionism, exh. cat. (National Gallery, London/Yale University Press, 1990), pp. 72–75.
  280. See receipt of object report, May 21, 1943, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  281. See Faye Wrubel, treatment report, Mar. 1997, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  282. Kirk Vuillemot, “Monet Frame Descriptions Final,” Dec. 3, 2013, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  283. According to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1283 (ill.); 501, the painting may have been sold as Meule, temps gris. According to Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 (Fall 1984), pp. 15; 21, n. 17, the painting was acquired by Bertha Honoré Palmer, Chicago, by 1892.
  284. According to Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 (Fall 1984), pp. 15; 21, n. 17, the painting was acquired by Bertha Honoré Palmer, Chicago, by 1892.
  285. This painting was on loan from the Palmer family to the Art Institute of Chicago, intermittently, by 1930, according to Museum Registration department artists sheets, on file in Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago. The painting was put up for sale at Parke-Bernet Galleries, New York, but was bought in. See Parke-Bernet Galleries, Distinguished Paintings by Modern Artists and Works by XIX Century Painters including Renoir, Manet, Van Gogh, Gauguin, Degas, Cezanne, Monet, Seurat, Bonnard, Matisse, Modigliani, Pissarro, Daumier, Corot and Boudin All from Private Owners including the Estate of the Late Potter Palmer Chicago Sold by Direction of the Executors Mrs. Potter Palmer and Henry L. Hollis, Property of a New York Private Collector and Other Owners Sold by their Order, sale cat. (Parke-Bernet Galleries, Mar. 16, 1944, p. 33, lot 46 (ill.). There is an annotated copy of this sale catalogue in the Art Institute of Chicago, Ryerson and Burnham Library, which includes the notation “3900” next to lot. 46. Receipt of object 9219 (on file Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago) records the return of the painting to the Art Institute after the sale.
  286. According to shipping out order A647, on file in Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago.
  287. According to Tiffany Johnston, Art Institute of Chicago, telephone conversation with Jean Edmonson, Acquavella Galleries, Apr. 26, 2002; see notes in curatorial file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  288. According to Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 (Fall 1984), p. 7. This identification is not presented by Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1283 (ill.); 501.
  289. An installation view of this painting at the Chicago venue can be found in Anne Rorimer, “The Date Paintings of On Kawara,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 17, 2 (1991), p. 122, fig. 2.
  290. The painting was exhibited but was not included in the exhibition catalogue; see Medieval to Modern European Painting and Sculpture cataloguing card in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  291. According to Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 (Fall 1984), p. 7. This identification is not presented by Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1283 (ill.); 501.
  292. The Art Institute picture is misidentified in the book.
  293. The latter was republished as Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Age of French Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Art Institute of Chicago, rev. and expanded ed. (Art Institute of Chicago/Yale University Press, 2010; repr. 2013), pp. 11 (ill.); 21 (ill.); 22; 113; 119; 172; 175, cat. 92 (ill.).
  294. The painting was on loan to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts for consideration as a purchase. It was not purchased by the museum and was sent directly to the Art Institute of Chicago. See Brian Kraft to the Art Institute of Chicago, e-mail correspondence, July 18, 2001, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago; receipt of object 30887, on file in Museum Registration, Art Institute of Chicago.
  295. Boston, Museum of Fine Arts, Monet in the ’90s: The Series Paintings, Feb. 7–Apr. 29, 1990.
  296. See Don H. Johnson, C. Richard Johnson, Jr., Andrew G. Klein, William A. Sethares, H. Lee, and Ella Hendriks, “A Thread Counting Algorithm for Art Forensics,” 2009 IEEE Thirteenth Digital Signal Processing and Fifth IEEE Signal Processing Education Workshop (IEEE, 2009), pp. 679–84; doi:10.1109/DSP.2009.4786009.
  297. See Damon M. Conover, John K. Delaney, Paola Ricciardi, and Murray H. Loew, “Towards Automatic Registration of Technical Images of Works of Art,” in Computer Vision and Image Analysis of Art II, ed. David G. Stork, James Coddington, and Anna Bentkowska-Kafel, Proc. SPIE 7869 (SPIE/IS&T, 2011), doi:10.1117/12.872634.
  298. For further discussion, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert Erdmann, “Thread Count, Weave, and Ground Analysis of Claude Monet’s Vieille & Troisgros/Troisgros Frères Canvases in the Art Institute of Chicago,” in Painting Techniques: History, Materials and Studio Practice (Rijksmuseum, forthcoming). The numbers preceded by a W refer to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  299. For an overview of the materials and methods of Claude Monet’s paintings in the Art Institute of Chicago, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert G. Erdmann, “An In-depth Study of the Materials and Technique of Paintings by Claude Monet from the Art Institute of Chicago,” ICOM-CC 17th Triennial Meeting Preprints, Melbourne, Sept. 15–19, 2014 (forthcoming).
  300. Using the toolbar at the bottom right, any two images of the painting may be selected for comparison by clicking the layers icon to the right of the slider bar. The slider bar may be moved to transition back and forth between the two chosen images. The jagged line icon brings up a list of available annotations, or colored lines that show the significant features visible in each image, which may be turned on or off in any combination. For example, the red annotation lines, associated with the natural-light image, trace some of the painting’s key compositional features. When overlaid onto a technical image (X-ray, raking light, UV, etc.), the red outlines help the viewer to better observe how features in the technical image relate to or diverge from the painting as seen with the naked eye. (When annotations are turned on, a legend appears in the upper right showing each color and its associated image type.) The circular arrow icon returns the image to the default settings (natural light, full-image view, natural-light [red] annotation on). The four-arrow icon toggles between the view of the image in the page and a full-screen view of the image. In the upper right corner, the vertical slider bar may be moved to zoom into or out of the image; different parts of the image can be accessed by clicking and dragging within the image itself. The icon in the upper left corner opens a small view of the full image, within which a red box indicates the portion of the overall image being viewed when zooming is enabled.
  301. XRF analysis, in conjunction with microscopic examination, indicates that the paint mixture includes vermilion and lead white; other pigments may also be present in the mixture. See Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stacks_83_166_XRF_Results,” Dec. 9, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  302. Flax was identified by microscopic cross-sectional fiber identification. See Inge Fiedler, “1983_166_Monet_analytical_report,” May 27, 2014, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  303. See, for example, the chart of standard sizes available from Bourgeois Aîné in 1888, reproduced in David Bomford, Jo Kirby, John Leighton, and Ashok Roy, Art in the Making: Impressionism, exh. cat. (National Gallery, London/Yale University Press, 1990), p. 46, fig. 31. The original dimensions of the painting were based on a visual estimate of the original foldovers.
  304. Thread count and weave information determined by Thread Count Automation Project software; see Don H. Johnson and Robert G. Erdmann, “Thread Count Report: Stack of Wheat (Thaw, Sunset), Claude Monet, 1890–1891 (W1284/1983.166),” Nov. 2011.
  305. This suggests that these canvases were cut from the same bolt of fabric. See Don H. Johnson, “Weave Match Report: Claude Monet, W1231, W1269, W1270, W1278, W1284, W1397, W1475, W1628,” Apr. 2011. For further discussion, see Kimberley Muir, Inge Fiedler, Don H. Johnson, and Robert Erdmann, “Thread Count, Weave, and Ground Analysis of Claude Monet’s Vieille & Troisgros/Troisgros Frères Canvases in the Art Institute of Chicago,” in Painting Techniques: History, Materials and Studio Practice (Rijksmuseum, forthcoming). The numbers preceded by a W refer to the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  306. The construction and patina suggest that the stretcher is original or was added early in the painting’s lifetime.
  307. The presence of a sizing layer is difficult to determine from cross sections due to previous conservation treatments, including aqueous lining.
  308. Traces of magnesium, aluminum, and silicon were detected in association with the calcium particles and are believed to be impurities often associated with the chalk. Several lead clusters were also observed in the ground. The ground composition was analyzed using SEM/EDX and XRF. For more detailed results and conditions used, see Inge Fiedler, “1983_166_Monet_analytical_report,” May 27, 2014; Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stacks_83_166_XRF_Results,” Dec. 9, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  309. This technique of working from darker to lighter tones is unique among the Art Institute Stacks. This seems to be intentional (i.e., part of the artist’s working method), to impart a darker, subdued tonality to the lighter, more colorful strokes applied over the top, rather than a change in color scheme, as seen in other Art Institute works, Stack of Wheat (Snow Effect, Overcast Day) (cat. 30 [W1281], inv. 1933.1155) and Stack of Wheat (cat. 31 [W1283], inv. 1983.29).
  310. The pigments were identified by the following methods: lead white, cobalt blue, viridian, emerald green, cadmium yellow, one or more iron oxide pigments, and vermilion (XRF). XRF analysis was carried out in air. XRF does not detect organic pigments, if present, and has low sensitivity for elements like silicon and sodium (a component of ultramarine blue). Analysis was carried out on selected areas and may not include all pigments present in the painting. For more detailed results and conditions used, see Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stack_83_166_XRF_Results,” Dec. 9, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  311. Identifying the specific type of lake used only by its fluorescence under UV is difficult, as many factors, including the type of substrate, binders, varnishes and admixtures with other pigments, can ultimately affect the perceived color of the fluorescence. Some types of madder and purpurin lake pigments have been reported to fluoresce orange, but other lakes, such as lacs, may fluoresce as well. The characteristics of red lakes, including their fluorescence under ultraviolet light, are discussed in Helmut Schweppe and John Winter, “Madder and Alizarin,” in Artists’ Pigments: A Handbook of Their History and Characteristics, ed. Elisabeth West FitzHugh, vol. 3 (National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1997), pp. 124–26. See also Ruth Johnston-Feller, Color Science in the Examination of Museum Objects: Nondestructive Procedure (Getty Conservation Institute, 2001), p. 207.
  312. Titanium white was not available as an artists’ pigment until around 1920.
  313. See Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stacks_83_166_XRF_Results,” Dec. 9, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  314. The binding medium was not analyzed. The estimation of an oil medium is based on visual examination, as well as on knowledge of Monet’s technique and published analyses of Monet paintings in other collections. See, for example, David Bomford, Jo Kirby, John Leighton, and Ashok Roy, Art in the Making: Impressionism, exh. cat. (National Gallery, London/Yale University Press, 1990), pp. 72–75.
  315. The original paint in the area of the signature and date looks like it has been gouged to different degrees (i.e., upper paint layers only in some places and down to the canvas in others). This damage is visible in the X-ray.
  316. These areas of retouching are directly over the original paint and do not include the coarse fill material described above. It is uncertain whether this retouching was done at the same time as those fills; there is little retouching left from the fill campaign to compare the qualities of the retouching.
  317. The trees on the left side of the stack, on the other hand, appear to be original: no titanium was detected with XRF, and the paint looks similar to the original paint and is intimately bonded with the underlayers.
  318. See Kimberley Muir, “Mon_Stack_83_166_XRF_Results,” Dec. 9, 2011, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  319. See Frank Zuccari, treatment report, Sept. 5, 1996, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  320. Kirk Vuillemot, “Monet Frame Descriptions Final,” Dec. 3, 2013, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  321. Kirk Vuillemot, “Monet Frame Descriptions Final,” Dec. 3, 2013, on file in the Conservation Department, Art Institute of Chicago.
  322. According to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1284 (ill.); 501. According to the Frick Collection’s online “Archives Directory for the History of Collecting in America,” Hamman was the director of Roland Knoedler’s gallery in Paris.
  323. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for 1888–93 (no. 1060, as Meules, le dégel, soleil couchant):, “Purchased by DR New York on 11 April 1893 at the Knoedler sale, lot no. 77 for 6 000 F (half share with Boussod & Valadon) / Stock DR New York no. 1060,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. See also American Art Association, Catalogue of Modern Paintings Belonging to M. Knoedler & Co. Successors to Goupil & Co. to be Sold by Absolute Auction to Settle the Estate of the Late John Knoedler (American Art Association, 1893), p. 32, lot 77, (as The Haystack, Thaw). Annotated copies of the sale catalogue in the curatorial object file indicate that Durand-Ruel and Boussod et Valadon purchased the painting in half shares, along with two price notations, $1,200 and $1250.
  324. The Paris and New York Durand-Ruel stock books record different dates for the sale. The New York stock book for 1894–1905 (no. 1060, as Meules, le dégel, soleil couchant) states: “Sold to DR Paris on 30 September 1899.” The Paris stock book for 1901–13 (no. 5503, Meules au soleil couchant) states: “Purchased by DR Paris on 13 November 1899 as Meules au soleil couchant / Stock DR Paris no. 5503; photo no. 5978.” See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  325. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book for 1901–13 (no. 5503, as Meules au soleil couchant): “Sold to Boussod & Valadon on 27 May 1903,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. An additional letter from the Durand-Ruel Archives clarifies that the painting became solely owned by Boussod, Valadon et Cie at this time. According to Caroline Durand-Ruel Godfroy from the Durand-Ruel Archives, “Le tableau appartient totalement à Boussod et Valadon et est alors sorti de notre stock.” See Caroline Durand-Ruel Godfroy to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 12, 2002, in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  326. According to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1284 (ill.); 501.
  327. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, Paris, stock book for 1901–13 (no. 8601, as Meules, soleil couchant): “Purchased from Rosenberg on 11 January 1908 / Stock DR Paris no. 8601 as Meules, soleil couchant,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  328. The Paris and New York Durand-Ruel stock books record different dates for the sale. The Paris stock book for 1913–21 (no. 8601, as Meules, soleil couchant) states: “Sold to DR New York on 11 November 1915.” The New York stock book for 1904–24 (no. 3899, as Meules, le dégel, soleil couchant) states: “Purchased by DR New York on 9 December 1915 as Meules, le dégel, soleil couchant / Stock DR New York no. 3899.” See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  329. The transaction is recorded in the Durand-Ruel, New York, stock book for the year 1949 (no. 3899, as as Meules, le dégel, soleil couchant): “Sold to André Weil on 9 January 1948,” as confirmed by Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  330. According to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1284 (ill.); 501; and according to Rachel Adler to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 27, 2002, e-mail correspondence, in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  331. According to Rachel Adler to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 27, 2002, e-mail correspondence from in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  332. According to Rachel Adler to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 27, 2002, e-mail correspondence, in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago, “the painting was in the collection of Mrs. Mercedes Eraso de Rodríguez Landaeta, Caracas, Venezuela, at the time I sold it.”
  333. According to fax from Patricia H. Tompkins, James Goodman Gallery, to the Art Institute of Chicago, June 21, 2002.
  334. According to telephone conversation between Stephen Hahn and the Art Institute of Chicago, May 14, 2002; notes from the conversation dated June 10, 2002 in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  335. According to telephone conversation between Gail Edmondson, Acquavella Galleries, and the Art Institute of Chicago, Sept. 16, 1998; notes from conversation in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. Also according to telephone conversation between Stephen Hahn and the Art Institute of Chicago, May 14, 2002; notes from the conversation dated June 10, 2002 in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  336. According to Art Dealers Association of America document, Sept. 26, 1991, in curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  337. The painting was given to the Art Institute of Chicago in undivided fractional interests beginning in 1983. The Art Institute received the final fractional interest for 100 percent ownership in 1991.
  338. According to Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 (Fall 1984), p. 7. This identification is not presented by Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1284 (ill.); 501.
  339. This information was confirmed by the Durand-Ruel Archives; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. There is an annotated copy of the exhibition catalogue in the National Gallery of Art, D.C., Library, Rare Books Collection, which includes the Durand-Ruel, New York stock number (no. 1060) and a price code, “osss,” written over “osss,” which was crossed out.
  340. This information was confirmed by the Durand-Ruel Archives; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  341. The inclusion of the painting in the exhibition was confirmed by the Durand-Ruel Archives “from Brouillard at 10 May 1900”; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. This exhibition is not listed in Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vols. 1–4 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996).
  342. According to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1284 (ill.); 501; and Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 4, Nos. 1596–1983 et les grandes décorations (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), p. 1020. See also Bernhard Echte and Walter Feilchenfeldt, eds., with assistance by Petra Cordioli, Kunstsalon Paul Cassirer: Die Ausstellungen 1908–1910 (Nimbus. Kunst und Bücher, 2013), pp. 146 (ill.), 151, 493.
  343. This information was confirmed by the Durand-Ruel Archives “from Brouillard at 9 April 1914”; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  344. According to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1284 (ill.); 501. According to the Durand-Ruel Archives: “Wildenstein mentions another exhibition at Durand-Ruel Paris 1914 (“Tableaux par Claude Monet” Mar. 2–21, 1914, no. 43, Meules, soleil couchant), but we have no proof that it refers to the above mentioned picture.” See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago. The exhibition dates are from the catalogue; see Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 4, Nos. 1596–1983 et les grandes décorations (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), p. 1022, which says that the exhibition took place from Mar. 2–21, 1914. Charles F. Stuckey, with the assistance of Sophia Shaw, Claude Monet, 1840–1926, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago/Thames & Hudson, 1995), p. 245, has proposed that the painting was possibly included in Durand-Ruel, New York, Claude Monet, held Feb. 1–16, 1914.
  345. According to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1284 (ill.); 501.
  346. An installation view of this painting at the Chicago venue can be found in Anne Rorimer, “The Date Paintings of On Kawara,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 17, 2 (1991), p. 122, fig. 2.
  347. According to Richard R. Brettell, “Monet’s Haystacks Reconsidered,” Art Institute of Chicago Museum Studies 11, 1 (Fall 1984), p. 7. This identification is not presented by Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), p. 501, cat. 1284.
  348. This information was confirmed by the Durand-Ruel Archives; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  349. This information was confirmed by the Durand-Ruel Archives; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  350. The inclusion of the painting in the exhibition was confirmed by the Durand-Ruel Archives “from Brouillard at 10 May 1900”; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  351. According to Daniel Wildenstein, Monet: Catalogue raisonné/Werkverzeichnis, vol. 3, Nos. 969–1595 (Taschen/Wildenstein Institute, 1996), pp. 495, cat. 1284 (ill.); 501. According to the Durand-Ruel Archives: “Wildenstein mentions another exhibition at Durand-Ruel Paris 1914 (“Tableaux par Claude Monet,” Mar. 2–21, 1914, no. 43, Meules, soleil couchant), but we have no proof that it refers to the above mentioned picture.” See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  352. This information was confirmed by the Durand-Ruel Archives “from Brouillard at 9 April 1914”; see Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives,to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  353. The latter was republished as Gloria Groom and Douglas Druick, with the assistance of Dorota Chudzicka and Jill Shaw, The Age of French Impressionism: Masterpieces from the Art Institute of Chicago, rev. and expanded ed. (Art Institute of Chicago/Yale University Press, 2010; repr. 2013), pp. 21 (ill.); 22; 113; 119; 172; 175, cat. 93 (ill.).
  354. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  355. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  356. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  357. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  358. See Paul-Louis Durand-Ruel and Flavie Durand-Ruel, Durand-Ruel Archives, to the Art Institute of Chicago, Feb. 5, 2013, curatorial object file, Art Institute of Chicago.
  359. The typewritten page containing the label transcription is stamped with the “Inventory – 1983 – 1984” stamp.
  360. See Don H. Johnson, C. Richard Johnson, Jr., Andrew G. Klein, William A. Sethares, H. Lee, and Ella Hendriks, “A Thread Counting Algorithm for Art Forensics,” 2009 IEEE Thirteenth Digital Signal Processing and Fifth IEEE Signal Processing Education Workshop (IEEE, 2009), pp. 679–84; doi:10.1109/DSP.2009.4786009.
  361. See Damon M. Conover, John K. Delaney, Paola Ricciardi, and Murray H. Loew, “Towards Automatic Registration of Technical Images of Works of Art,” in Computer Vision and Image Analysis of Art II, ed. David G. Stork, James Coddington, and Anna Bentkowska-Kafel, Proc. SPIE 7869 (SPIE/IS&T, 2011), doi:10.1117/12.872634.
  362. The other drawing of Grainstacks (1891; National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo [D444]) was created for illustration. The number preceded by D refers to drawings in the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Catalogue raisonné, vol. 5, Supplément aux peintures; Dessins; Pastels; Index (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1991), p. 130, no. 444.
  363. Of the numerous works in oil of this subject, Grainstacks, in Bright Sunlight (1890; Hill-Stead Museum, Farmington, Conn. [W1267]) most closely relates to the Art Institute drawing. See James A. Ganz and Richard Kendall, The Unknown Monet: Pastels and Drawings (Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute/Yale University Press, 2007), pp. 207–08. The number preceded by D refers to drawings in the Monet catalogue raisonné; see Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Catalogue raisonné, vol. 5, Supplément aux peintures; Dessins; Pastels; Index (Bibliothèque des Arts, 1991).
  364. Thicknesses and textures refer to samples provided in Elizabeth Lunning and Roy Perkinson, The Print Council of America Paper Sample Book: A Practical Guide to the Description of Paper (Print Council of America/Sun Hill, 1996).
  365. According to Daniel Wildenstein, Claude Monet: Catalogue raisonné, vol. 5,Supplément aux peintures; Dessins; Pastels; Index (Wildenstein Institute, 1991), p. 130, cat. D444bis (ill.).

How to Cite

Entry by Jill Shaw; Technical Report by Kirk Vuillemot and Kimberly Nichols, “Cats. 27–33 Stacks of Wheat, 1890/91,” in Monet Paintings and Drawings at the Art Institute of Chicago, ed. Gloria Groom and Jill Shaw, rev. ed. (2014; repr., Art Institute of Chicago, 2026), https://doi.org/10.53269/9780865592698/23.

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