Rouen Cathedral Series by Claude Monet (Rouen, France — 1894) — Questions and answers

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What was special about Claude Monet's paintings of Rouen Cathedral?

Choices

  1. He painted only one big picture of the cathedral.
  2. He painted many pictures of the cathedral at different times of day and in different weather. ✓
  3. He used only dark colors for all the paintings.
  4. He painted them all from memory without looking at the cathedral.

Answer: He painted many pictures of the cathedral at different times of day and in different weather.

From page 1

What did Eugène Boudin teach Monet to do?

Choices

  1. How to sketch perfect portraits.
  2. How to paint 'en plein air', or outdoors. ✓
  3. How to paint still life pictures in a studio.
  4. How to mix colors perfectly before painting.

Answer: How to paint 'en plein air', or outdoors.

From page 3

What surprising thing did Monet discover about the fog in London?

Choices

  1. The fog made everything look very sad.
  2. The fog was actually made of many beautiful colors like pink and violet. ✓
  3. The fog was so thick he couldn't paint anything at all.
  4. The fog only appeared in the evenings.

Answer: The fog was actually made of many beautiful colors like pink and violet.

From page 4

Where did Monet settle in 1883, and what did it become for him?

Choices

  1. He settled in Paris and opened a big art gallery.
  2. He settled in London and studied old paintings.
  3. He settled in Giverny, and his garden became his main inspiration. ✓
  4. He settled in Rouen and began painting the cathedral right away.

Answer: He settled in Giverny, and his garden became his main inspiration.

From page 5

Why was Monet drawn to Rouen Cathedral in 1892?

Choices

  1. He wanted to hide from the war.
  2. He was told to paint it by his family.
  3. He saw it as a new challenge to capture light on its complex surface. ✓
  4. He planned to live inside the cathedral.

Answer: He saw it as a new challenge to capture light on its complex surface.

From page 6

How did Monet manage to paint the Rouen Cathedral at different times of the day?

Choices

  1. He painted one picture each day, finishing it quickly.
  2. He painted only at night when the light was constant.
  3. He set up many canvases and switched between them as the light changed. ✓
  4. He took photographs and painted from those later.

Answer: He set up many canvases and switched between them as the light changed.

From page 7

How did people generally react to Monet's Rouen Cathedral paintings when he showed them?

Choices

  1. Everyone loved them and thought they were perfect.
  2. Everyone hated them and thought they were a waste of time.
  3. Some people praised them, but others thought they were too repetitive. ✓
  4. Most people ignored them completely.

Answer: Some people praised them, but others thought they were too repetitive.

From page 8

What do Monet's Rouen Cathedral paintings teach us today?

Choices

  1. That cathedrals are the only important things to paint.
  2. That only famous artists can truly capture light.
  3. That even familiar things can look different with changing light, and art can capture that. ✓
  4. That paintings must always be exactly the same as real life.

Answer: That even familiar things can look different with changing light, and art can capture that.

From page 10