Claude Monet
1903
Oil on canvas
73.82 x 98.11 cm
This dramatic view of Waterloo Bridge depicts one of Claude Monet’s favourite light effects as powerful rays of sunshine pierce the thick cloud cover and turn a section of the Thames into a patch of gold. Unusually, the bridge is seen from further away than in other views, with at least six of its nine arches included in the composition. The distinctive cubic form of the Waterloo Flour Mill is recognisable in the centre. The blurring of water and sky in Monet’s Views of the Thames anticipates his Water Lilies, which he began after his return from London and which occupied him for the rest of his life.