A dreamlike Monet painting inspired by Venice is on display in San Francisco

In October 1908, 68-year-old French Impressionist painter Claude Monet arrived in Venice with his second wife Alice. It was his first and only time in the city, but the experience left an unforgettable impression. The city’s stunning canals and ornate architecture have inspired more than 100 works of art. More than 20 of Monet’s Venice paintings are now on display at San Francisco’s de Young Museum in the first exhibition dedicated to Monet’s Venice paintings since their debut in Paris more than a century ago.

Following his debut in Brooklyn, monet and venice This exhibition is co-sponsored by the San Francisco Museum of Art and the Brooklyn Museum. Monet’s Venice-inspired works are thoughtfully displayed alongside selected works from across his career, including some of his most famous works. water lily. Other major works include: doge’s palace and grand canal, veniceboth on loan from the Brooklyn Museum and the San Francisco Art Institute.

“Monet only visited Venice once, but his paintings of the city are among the most stunning,” said Thomas P. Campbell, director and CEO of the San Francisco Art Institute. “Unlike the bustling landscapes painted by other artists, Monet’s Venice is a hauntingly deserted landscape, with its architecture, buildings and canals immersed in atmospheric light. This exhibition offers the opportunity to experience Monet’s sublime vision of Italy’s famous city, allowing visitors to feel inspired by a new perspective on an artist they think they know well.”

Monet was fascinated by Venice and once said that he thought the city was “too beautiful to paint.” Although he had only planned to stay for a few weeks, he stayed for two months, often painting scenes from a canal gondola, similar to the “studio boat” he had used on the Seine early in his career.

“His Venice paintings are some of the most brilliant and poetic of his career, but they are often overshadowed by his later works, which were associated with his depictions of French landscapes and the rise of abstract art in the 20th century,” said Melissa E. Bron, collections director and chief curator, exhibition co-curator, and former museum curator at the Victoria and Albert Museum. “His stay in Venice was an important period of creative rebirth that had not been explored in depth until this exhibition.”

The exhibition also features works by other artists who worked in Venice, including Canaletto, John Singer Sargent, JMW Turner, and James McNeil Whistler. These help show how Monet ultimately reshaped the city’s rich pictorial tradition.

monet and venice ” is on display at De Young until July 26, 2026. For more information about the exhibition, please visit the San Francisco Museum of Fine Arts website.

More than 20 of Claude Monet’s Venetian paintings are currently on display at the de Young Museum in San Francisco.

Monet was fascinated by Venice and once said that he thought the city was “too beautiful to paint.”

Although he had only planned to stay for a few weeks, he spent two months in Venice, often painting scenes from a canal gondola.

Monet’s Venice-inspired works are thoughtfully displayed alongside selected works from across his career, including some of his most famous works. water lily.

Exhibition information:
monet and venice
March 21st – July 26th, 2026
de young
golden gate park
Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive 50
San Francisco, California 94118

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My Modern Met has granted permission to publish the San Francisco Art Institute/de Young photo.

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