BASEL, SWITZERLAND.- The Beyeler Foundation presents "Claude Monet and modernism," on view through August 4, 2002. Claude Monet, the best known, most "typical" and most independent of the French Impressionists, is the central figure in a comprehensive exhibition at the Fondation Beyeler that features more than forty of his masterpieces. The exhibition particularly concentrates on Monet's late work and its influence on post-war modern painting. By presenting Monet in the context of "soulmates" who worked mainly in the second half of the 20th century - artists like Mark Rothko, Sam Francis and Gerhard Richter - the exhibition sets out to explore the major theme of Monet's modernity. A special section of the exhibition takes a step forward into the 21st century by showing the painterly achievements of Impressionism in the medium of contemporary video and computer art.



Monet's work was strongly influenced by his intense preoccupation with fundamental questions relating to the perception and representation of nature. He wanted not only to draw closer to nature through painting but also to "surrender to her totally as a guide". His lifelong theme was the exploration of "momentariness"; he was interested by the way in which figures and objects are atmospherically embedded in the light surrounding them. He sought to approach what he considered to be "perfection" and "eternity" by capturing a specific moment through painting.



Monet once said that what fascinated him most about painting were the "different appearances of the world in its interrelationships with unknown realities". The simultaneousness of reality and its reflection in his water lily paintings and his landscapes, which have neither horizon nor perspective, moved beyond traditional spatial concepts, leading to a new perception of space and objects.



Monet's remarkable capacity to express his personal experience of nature developed continuously until, leaving Impressionism behind, it led him to the verge of abstract painting in his late work.