Elizabeth Murray (1) (1953–)

Elizabeth Murray was fortunate to live and work for a year in Monet's garden at Giverny, observing it in all its seasonal splendors. She shares her experiences and insights into the workings of this garden in this beautiful book, full of photographs and garden plans. One of the most interesting features, for me, is her descriptions of how Monet achieved his colour palettes with blooms and foliage. While I will never have six acres and a bevy of gardeners, I can imitate (on a much smaller show more scale), his plant and colour combinations. And I can drool over the photographs until I can afford to visit Giverny in person. show less

A stunning romp through the mind of artist Claude Monet and the heart and soul of author Elizabeth Murray, Monet's Passion is an exquisite tying together of the impressionistic world of Monet and the gardens that inspired him.

Using Monet's gardens in Giverny, color palettes, and painterly tools as backdrop, Murray gives us insight into the Impressionists and their use of light and color as well as Mother Nature herself. We learn how Monet carefully chose seeds and planted his gardens for show more the color and light they would provide and how he would transpose that into his paintings...

"Monet planted rich orange, gold, and bronze wallflowers together with pink tulips on the west side of the flower garden to amplify the effects of the setting sun. Elsewhere he used clear blue and delicate salmon hues to convey the feeling of mist softening the morning light. Pastel hues in the distance, with bright, crisper values of the same color in the foreground, added a painterly illusion of a misty background. "

The book acts as both an introduction to Monet---who he was, how he came to painting and gardening---and a garden planner for the rest of us. Along with beautifully sumptuous photographs of the gardens today, Monet's Passion also includes sketches, overlays, and plans for how to recreate the gardens at Giverny even if it's in pots on your deck.

Lucky for us, Elizabeth Murray is an artist and a gardener who is not afraid to follow wherever her path leads her, to ask for what she wants and to live her life to the fullest. A master gardener herself, Murray worked in the Giverny gardens for 9 months in exchange for room and board. As a result, we have this exquisite book. Whether you use Monet's Passion: Ideas, Inspiration & Insight from the Painter's Gardens as a coffee table art book or a garden planning book doesn't matter. Treat yourself, though, and add it to your collection. show less

I was conflicted about Monet’s Passion. Should I shelve this with my gardening books? It does dive into landscape architecture, and provides wonderful advice for how to duplicate the features at Giverny. But that did not seem adequate. Should it reside with other fine art books? It does give insight into the mind of Monet and his choice of subjects. But that did not seem adequate either. In the end it found its place of honor with my landscape photography books! The painterly quality of show more the photographs makes some of them hard to separate from the original impressionistic works by Monet. It is a wonderful treatise on color and space. Recommended for lovers of art in the natural world. show less

With a very limited knowledge of art and art history, I was a bit wary of a detailed book such as this - I thought it might be too much analysis for me. Luckily, it turned out to be the perfect book! I love knowing the WHY and where of paintings, not just painting technique. I like to know the history of the subject, the reason for the painting, the logistics of making the painting, etc. And this book fulfilled those wishes in ways I'd never imagined! It was a joy to read, and I I have spent show more hours and hours poring over the diagrams, photos, and other extras. You learn where paintings were made from, what plants grew when and why Monet painted when/where, and you learn all about the changes that take place over a year.

I read the book straight through when I first received it, and thought I was finished. I have found myself, though, coming back to it again and again, to re-read something for enjoyment, or to check on my memory of a plant or a pond. This will be a book that I keep for very very long time! show less