Claude Monet’s Water Lilies to Debut At Christie’s Hong Kong

Auction August 28, 2024 Carlota Gamboa

Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain

Claude Monet, Le bassin aux nymphéas, 1913-1917. License

Precursor of modernism and founder of the impressionist school, Claude Monet rendered approximately 250 oil paintings of his water lilies from 1896 to 1920. Although already a seasoned painter by this time, having found renown within his community and influential salons, the Water Lilies series— often referred to by their French name, Nymphéas— has become synonymous with our contemporary visualizations of Monet’s work.

Images hailing from the painter’s private garden in Giverny create textured scenes for viewers to immerse themselves in. For Monet, the spirit of a painting was indivisible from the artist’s personal perception of nature, specifically in regards to plein air, or open air landscapes.

Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain

Claude Monet, Le Bassin aux nymphéas, harmonie rose, 1900. License

Now, after 125 years in private collection, one of Monet’s earliest Nymphéas will debut at auction. The piece, a 2.5 ft x 3 ft painting from 1897-1899, headlines the Christie’s Hong Kong 20th/21st Century Evening Sale, held on September 26th. This sale will also mark the launch of the auction house’s new Asia-Pacific headquarters in The Henderson building, designed by Zaha Hadid architects.

Adrien Meyer, Global Head of Private Sales and Co-Chairman of Impressionist & Modern Art at Christie's, stated in a press release, “Claude Monet's Nymphéas are among the most influential images in modern art history. These Nymphéas reveal the pictorial innovations that would define his celebrated series. Presented for the first time at auction, it is no wonder that half of the paintings of this first series are already held in public institutions.”

The piece at auction is one of eight initial water lily paintings, and four of the others are held by notable museums around the world: Musée Marmottan Monet in Paris, the Kagoshima City Museum of Art, the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna in Rome, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Courtesy of Christie's

Claude Monet, Nymphéas, 1897-1899

The debuting piece spent many years in the Monet family after Claude’s death, before heading into the private collection, which will now present it to the world. The public will be able to view the artwork, along with the other pieces participating in the auction, a few days before the live sale.

Some of the other works featured include pieces by Yayoi Kusama, Kazuo Shiraga, and Georg Baselitz. Zao Wou Ki’s seminal 05.06.80– Triptyque (1980), Vincent Van Gogh’s 1887 painting Les canots amarrés, and La préméditation (1943) by René Magritte are also major players in the auction.

In December of 2021, another of Monet’s Water Lilies made the auction record for a western work sold on mainland China. Going for $24 million (including fees), the 1913 Le Bassin Aux Nymphéas is yet another rendition of Monet’s Giverny summertime garden. The estimated price for the earlier Monet is thought to rival that, with an estimated price tag of $25,000,000 – 35,000,000 USD, or $200,000,000 – 280,000,000 in HKD.

About the Author