Claude Monet’s water lilies are among the most recognised paintings of the 20th century. One sold for $70 million (£50 million) at Sotheby’s in New York in May. Now another is to be shown in Britain for the first time, in south London. Water Lilies and Agapanthus (1914-17) will be displayed at the Dulwich Picture Gallery alongside a show dedicated to the late abstract expressionist Helen Frankenthaler.
The Radical Beauty show, from September to April, will focus on Frankenthaler’s woodcuts. But the Monet, loaned by the Musée Marmottan in Paris, will be shown alongside Frankenthaler’s 1979 painting Feather.
“We wanted to have one oil painting, to demonstrate Frankenthaler’s strength,” said Jennifer Scott, Dulwich’s director. “Feather is an absolutely beautiful abstract work.”
Scott said when she mentioned Feather to the Musée Marmottan, “they got very excited and suggested, ‘Would you like to borrow a Monet?’ It was for the similarities, that idea of not painting the thing but painting the essence of the thing. It felt like a beautiful conversation to be able to have, one painting by Monet and one by Frankenthaler.”
They discussed options, Scott said. “But the fact that this one had not been shown in the UK tipped it for me.”
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Karen Serres, curator of paintings at London’s Courtauld Gallery, said: “This painting shows that while Monet was never an abstract artist, his water lilies series shows him moving away from strict representation.”
