A Poem About A Monet Painting 'Le Jardin'
89Le Jardin by Claude Monet
Inspiration from Monet
France is a lovely, beautiful country. The language is poetic, the people are intriguing, the food is superb and the countryside is filled with flowers and trees and lovely landscapes, perfect for a Monet painting. I have always loved France since attempting to learn the language in high school and writing letters to my pen pal in an area now known as Alsace, Lorraine.
One day ten or so years ago, I had the chance to buy a Monet print of his painting, Le Jardin. I loved the colors and enchanting, ethereal beauty of the garden and decided to hang it in my bedroom. I would look at it every time I walked into my room and one particular night while getting ready for bed, I sat on the edge of my bed and imagined myself in that garden. It was as if my imagination coaxed me into this poetic world of Giverny where Monet had painted the original Le Jardin.
".... the garden is the retreat of an artist... the flowers are his companions... he wants to be able to caress them as he goes by... to feel them close to him... friendly and beneficent parts of his life..."
An excerpt from Le Temps, 1904, describing Le Jardin.
The Artist's Garden at Giverny
The Birth of a Narrative Poem
I was fascinated. I went to the library and checked out massive art books talking about Monet and his paintings. I wanted to find out his inspiration and know more about him as a man. My creative juices were aching to write a poem about this lovely garden. I read and read and jotted down notes. Claude Monet loved his garden. It became his world. “More than anything, I must have flowers, always, always.” He created a world of flowers for every season. I filled many pages of a notebook with the types of flowers, the colors, the surrounding area and started writing.
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I decided it would be a narrative, rhythmic poem, with rhyme and
meter. Narrative poems tell a story like a work of art themselves. Some
of the oldest, greatest poems are narrative and
they have endured throughout history. I wanted it to be the song of a
young woman who finds her love in this magical land. Lyrical in nature,
the words would flow as she weaves in and about this poetic world of
Monet’s painting.
I wrote it in story form first and then took
each section and composed the poem. The entire process from inspiration
to completion took a few months and when it was completed, I felt as if
I had given birth to a child. Some poems are difficult to understand
except to the poet only. I wanted this poem to be understood by anyone,
to take them on this imaginative, magical journey into a painting, a
garden of delight. Please enjoy her.
Le Pont Japonais
Water Lilies
Monet's Garden
"all of a sudden, I had the revelation of how enchanting my pond was."
"a profusion of white, pink, yellow and mauve, blond flesh tones against shades of orange, blazing copper, violets, black purples..."
"hollyhocks rise above this resplendent wave of color, light and vaporous, little dancer skirts that balloon and billow"
"fairy tale magic of poppies covering withering irises"
"he surrounded his house with flowers, wherever he happened to be. beauty soothes his eyes and its life flows into him"
Le Jardin d'Enchantment
Sweet- toned sky above me blue
awakens me with sighs for you,
perfume scents my bed of moss,
the willows whisper their soft caress.
This breeze across my face does blow
silken tresses of gold do glow,
star blue eyes so deep they see
through dark green waters, they gaze back at me.
A wisp of hair behind my ear,
I hear his voice inside me clear.
I gently touch my soft, round breast,
and follow the waters silhouette.
Stirs of passion inside me rise,
I lift my arms to reach the skies.
I dance in grand circles to these whispering trees,
"It is time, our fair maiden, he is waiting for thee."
I will dance in this delicate morning light
while the path is clear and bright.
No shadow will I dance upon,
in morning light I sing my song.
In my soft dress of yellow, satin so fine,
I call to him sweetly, "oh sun god divine.
I come to you shortly, my captor, my man
there I will dance for you, come kiss me again."
Through the blossoms he sees her, his dream of temptation,
the saffron and hollyhocks, sweet breath of carnation;
he loses himself in these colors and hues,
enchanted he looks in her eyes of star blue.
The roses then call to him, "go, kiss her hand,
embrace her, dance with her in this magical land
she will love you, adore you, open up like a flower,
her smiles, they will warm you and bring you great power."
She dances, now breathless, and draws to him near,
he kisses her hand and wipes away her tear,
embraces her deeply, 'dans ce dance de grande' passion
their love in full bloom in le jardin d'enchantment.
copyright. rebekahELLE
Giverny - The Magic of Monet's Garden
Informative Links About Monet and Impressionism
- How Monet's Garden Grew - France Today
Details about Claude Monet and his garden, the types of flowers he planted.
- Rick Steves\' Europe: Monet\'s Giverny Gardens
Planning tips to help maximize your time and money spent in Europe.
- Impressionism: Art and Modernity | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropol
A discussion of impressionism from the Metropolitan.
Narrative Poetry
- Narrative Poems
A collection of poems that tell a story or narrative.
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Veronica, I'm humbled by your words. so happy to hear that it moved you. she is very sweet and innocent and I see her so perfectly. I'm happy you were able to visualize and enter another world for a few minutes! thank you very much. :)
Monet's lovely garden continues to inspire!
what a lovely piece of writing will read tomorrow when i am not so tired, so as to give it justice
Great maintaining that feeling of music and rhythm. Quite a construction! I love Monet and very much enjoyed your article and poem. I am a fan!
Loved your piece!
thank you for the compliments! it's so nice to hear and this is my first poem I have published here, so it's wonderful to know you enjoy it. as mentioned above, it's like my little child! I appreciate your comments. :)
Charming and joyful poetry. Thank you
A truly beautiful poem that so well compliments Monet' paintings. Monet was my favorite of art exhibits that I've seen.
thank you alekhouse and invictus! so nice to read your words.
@invictus, what exhibit do you see? I was fortunate to see his collection at musee d'orsay and I remember just standing there staring at them, and of course, you want to touch them and you can't. truly another world he created for us. :)
Great Poem rebekahELLE, you show some great talent. As one poet to another, tell me please, did this composition come quickly, such as when one is truly "inspired", or was it an exercise for you (one that deserves high marks)? I find some of my compositions flow quickly and others are truly slow to wrap up. I do like your style - count me in as a fan.
thank you Timothy! this poem was both great fun and a great exercise in crafting a specific style of poetry. it was during a summer break from teaching so I was very relaxed and completely fascinated with the research I did on Monet and his garden. the actual story came quickly when my imagination took me into this painting, but putting it together did not begin until the research ended. some of it came very easily. when I look back at my notes, I see a lot of scratches and rearranging to get it right but I think writing out the story helped. I'll come to read some of your also. thank you for your comments! :)
wow, nice one from you Ms. Rebekah. I love Monet too, you did justice to this one, Maita
stirs of passion inside me rise
I lift my arms to reach the skies.
I dance in grand circles to these whispering trees,
"It is time, our fair maiden, he is waiting for thee."
Beautiful ornamentation! Thx for putting this hub together. I bookmarked this for reading it again.
thank you Maita and anjali for your very nice comments. it really does mean so much to have others read my poems and your words are wonderful to hear! thank you for reading and taking the time to post a comment. :))
Well done, lovely to read. The amazing thing is each verse is almost a poem in itself as well as contributing to the complete poem.
mmmmmm really nice. imagining a beautiful lady waiting around in a beautiful dress, dancing around while the winds dance with her golden hair in the sunshine. Like this work of yours really great:)
Smiling. This works! It just all works to make me feel a certain way. Thank you.
Our feelings, when all totaled comprise a sort of picture of us. What would a painting of all I ever felt look like? This poem made me smile--and imagine.
thanks 2uesday and jaybojas, so nice of you to leave such wonderful compliments! yes, when I think of her, she is like a poem herself so she lives a poetic life.
@philip, so nice to know it made you smile. she is meant for everyone, for our dreams, our fantasies. thank you so much for your heartfelt comments!
I have, incidentally, three Monet prints in my home. And I'm near the Barnes Foundation in suburban Philadelphia, which has an extensive impressionist collection. I need to schedule an appt. to go there and take them in again.
Dear Rebekah, I especially like this site. I have long wanted to visit Giverny and hopefully will one day. Thanks for this glimpse of it. I too love flowers and gardens but I also love snow so I am okay for now - though by February I am sick of it. I guess you don't have that problem. Do flowers bloom there all year round?
I love Monet! I also enjoyed your poem!
Very well done, my eye envisioned young lovers throughout.
Beautiful parallel between man and nature, love and flora.
thank you all for your kind comments. so happy you can envision the love and nature in the poetry! we are connected.
:)
Absolutely loved your poem; extremely moving, flows with passion. Simply divine a moment in time.
Sage
I love Monet - loved your poem - perhaps even more! Wonderful! Please keep writing! Rated it up! Absolutely wonderful!
thank you so much sage and kelly. such wonderful comments, happy that you enjoyed 'her' ~ sometimes these poems feel like children. thank you for reading and commenting, means a lot to me. :]
thanx for sharing, loved reading hub.
This is beautiful, realy enjoyed this. Keep up the good work :-)
I have many photographs of Monet's garden. Your words certainly do it justice.
What a lovely piece of poetry. Surely I feel the Monet touch here...
Beautiful HUB! Just like Monet! Two great artists! Kudos my friend!
thank you for such nice comments and compliments! when we share poetry, we're never sure of how it will be received, but I'm pleased to read that so many of you enjoy this inspired poem from one of the world's great artist's paintings. this web of life that branches out throughout generations! :)
Excellent hub and poem, beautiful images, well done, Stephen.
Since I love flowers but unfortunately possess no flower garden, I was drawn by the picture you feature in this hub. Le Jardin. I also love to write poetry as my Mom always did. Thanks for sharing this with us. Paris sounds wonderful! Maybe someday I will get to visit it as you have.
thank you stephen for your compliments, very nice to see you here. :]
thanks daisy storm, love your screen name! I'm glad you were drawn in by the picture. It is an inspiring painting that invites us in to enjoy its magic. nice to read you also enjoy writing poetry!
Impressionism is a purpose driven dream romantically and evocatively captured in your poem...
*sigh*
that is what i did when i finished reading your poem. i love Monet, and your poem is an impressionist painting, only words are your brushes. rating you UP ((hugs))
thank you mentalist and cosette! it really does mean so much when others read and enjoy my poetry. this one will always be special to me, thank you so much.
in a small Monet picture book someone gave me after I wrote this, it says, 'his paintings could well be described as an enchanted garden in which flowers of every season survive.' I really tried to capture this same feeling with this poem. {{more hugs}}
I become your fan too. Incredible masterpiece!!!
Wow nice one , please read my love poem too
I completely forgot about Monet! Awesome. Thanks for this hub!
awesome, you have my attention........definite page turner.
thank you rarebird, sameerk for your very nice comments and yes, I will read your poem. thanks for stopping by and reading. appreciated very much. :]
thanks mhuze! Monet is right up there as one of our enlightened artists, and such beautiful paintings.
loveofnight, thanks so much! what a nice compliment. :]
my my my my - a woman who loves Monet.
Your poetic thoughts are as sublime as his 'water lilies'
and it's sincerely obvious that you love words and that words have a love affair with you!
I am anxious to see if you could write a poetic ode to the flowers of Georgia O'Keefe!
thank you so much for your kind words. I do love words and Monet, yes.
I'm thrilled to know you enjoyed this poem. I love the work of O'Keefe... perhaps this could be another project in the works? Thanks for the idea. I do plan to work on some poetry very soon. thanks for reading and commenting! :)
This is a lovely poem, and draws us into that most lovely garden. My favorite phrase in your poem is:
"I will dance in this delicate morning light
while the path is clear and bright
no shadow will I dance upon
in morning light, I sing my song".
It is simple, and expresses perfectly the heart of one who is in love with her garden. Really delightful, that line! I think it actually expresses the desire of all of us to live life after such a pattern - dancing where the path is clear and bright! The heart filled with hope would not even think to dance in shadow, for it is filled with light. A very sweet poem. Thank you!
Beautiful, Rebekah, you paint with words just like Monet did with his paint brush:)
thanks Terye, you definitely got the message in that verse! she knows who she is and stays focused on her true path. it's wonderful to hear how others interpret it. thank YOU for sharing your thoughts.
Beata,you have given me the ultimate compliment. thank you so much. :)
Wonderful poem that took me from my livingroom to a place of love and peace. Thanks for bringing Monet to life.
SYou certainly got into Monets mind, i love the introduction to the poem too...... A most enjoyable piece of literature.
I have been in love with Monet since my college days when we studied painters through the ages. Your poem was exquisite, expressive, joyful, innocent...You have gift, thanks for sharing it with us.
its a beautiful declaMATIon.
Lovely! Well done!
thanks for your beautiful comments. I so appreciate your taking time to read and comment. I'm happy to take you with me into Monet's garden. what an inspiration he is to so many people around the world.
Wonderful
Sorry I missed this when you first published this, it's a beautiful poem. The art of Monet is so appealing to me.
thanks kathryn and Susan! Monet's art is like a gift, one of life's treasures. I love his use of light and how he took those things that he loved and made them living for generations to enjoy. thanks for sharing
I just love paintings by Monet and this poem is such a tribute. Beautiful, well done.
I thoroughly enjoyed your beautiful expression.
you are very gifted, and have a good eye.
I felt compelled to pen a small, and in no way in your league, poem.
On my hub, in light of a still on your video. I have written a small poem.
thank you acaetnna. It's hard not to love Monet's paintings, isn't it? They're so full of beauty and light.
thank you ddv for reading and leaving a comment. I'm thrilled to hear you were inspired to write.
You have such a beautiful gift with words. I too felt the emotion in your wonderful poem. Thank you for sharing :)
Your writing took me into the painting very successfully; to the point that I saw the hollyhocks and smelt the carnations. I liked the analogy of the carnations not just giving out scent , but breathing. An intensely feminine poem.
His colours and his approach to composition is astounding. His garden paintings and lilies are beautiful. This hub is a catalog of successful artworks, and taste.
Beautiful. I'm sharing this with my oldest daughter. We toured Monet's garden together about 10 years ago. He is her favorite...
Thanks to all of you for reading my poem. I so appreciate anyone taking the time to read it and your warm comments mean a lot to me. I'm thrilled that the poem can bring a smile or an imaginative few moments into Monet's garden. Denise, thank you for sharing with your daughter! :)
Everything about this hub is terrific . . . the story behind the poem, the accompanying prints, and the poem itself, which is as beautiful as the works that inspired it. You have a very beautiful child . . . btw, I'm not sure if you even noticed when you read it but my hub has always been linked to this poem in the first paragraph :)
Thank you Mike's Corner! I didn't notice that while reading your hub, thank you! I really appreciate your comment, I'm so glad you like the poem. It truly was a labor of love, I enjoyed every moment while working on it.
I'm thrilled to be able to share it with others. While in Paris, I never made it to Giverny. I really wanted to see it, but there was only so much time. I'll get there someday. I want to walk where he walked and inspired the world with his paintings and this beautiful, enchanting garden. Your hub captures it's beauty, and I hope others will take a look while visiting here. enjoy!
Reading your poem brought me back to Giverny. It's been 6 or 7 years since I was there and, to be honest, I haven't thought about it much during that time. It's a beautiful yet mysterious place and your poem captured both of those qualities. I really enjoyed it. Thanks for the portal back to Giverny.
Thank you Scriptore. I'm so happy that you enjoyed a journey back to Giverny. I appreciate your kind words and for taking the time to read Le Jardin.
This was very sexy and passionate, with wonderfully descriptive terms and imagery. Well-written, smooth-flowing, beautiful.
Very nice, thanks for telling me where to find it. It's so much easier if someone leads you to one of their poems instead of looking through all their hubs to find one
This was a really beautiful poem. I really enjoyed it.
Monet is incredible. Lovely poem.
Thank you for sharing, very enjoyable!
Thank you for reading. I appreciate your comments and taking the time to enjoy this poem. Sharing poetry is a personal experience for me. I'm happy you all have enjoyed Le Jardin d'Enchantment.
Mmm RebekahELLE! This is the kind of poem I like!!!And I also love Monet (and Beethoven). Rating up! Awesome!!
Beautiful. I love Monet - he's my favorite. Your words did his pieces justice.
The paintings are so much lovely!Great article.
How wonderful is your poem! It flows so lovely like a gentle garden breeze. You are very talented. Thank you for adding the background explanation of how it came about. That was very interesting. The photographs of the Monet paintings are beautiful. I have a Monet print in my family room of one of his gardens and it really is uplifting. Impressionism is one of my favorite art genres. Keep writing and keep writing poetry!
Thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks! I'm so very thankful that you all have taken the time to read one of my poems. I'm delighted that you enjoyed her, and agree that Monet's work is so lovely and inspiring.
I love the way I can close my eyes after reading your poem and watch two lovers from my hiding place inside my computer. Thanks.
Texas, That has to be one of the best compliments I've ever received in response to my poetry. Mission accomplished! I'm so glad you enjoyed reading and imagining. Thanks so much!
I started by reading the great introduction that led into the heart of a process I know and love and find myself living in most of my days with the use of illustrations used neatly and with precision, then this great poem and I felt like I was picked up of the earth and held by a star.
Your innocent enjoyment at expressing yourself is apparent in this poem. I am partial to the impressionists and Monet so my appreciation came easily.
Hi rebekahELLE-I'm linking your poem about Giverny to my poem about Giverny. :) Just an FYI
Not only a poem, but a great article too! Love it!
Thanks for reading and leaving your wonderful comments! I really do appreciate anyone taking the time to read my poetry. It's for you! Many thanks. :)
nice pic!diz is called nature's beauty....
...well I am back to revisit a classic and this time post it to my Facebook homepage and Louvre wall when I intend to frame it for all to see - I have created a new group on FB called LET'S JUST TALK MUSIC OR CINEMA (obviously I encourage art posts too) and I would love to have you join - we are in our 2nd week now and already have 70 members (mostly from the HUB) and we are having a lot of fun - please consider this invitation if you will . It would be a honor to have you with us - and my name on FB is Colin Stewart with the same profile photo and above your post here you should see our group name - just click it for the link - sending warm wishes to you from lake erie time ontario canada 2:34pm
Veronica Allen Level 1 Commenter 2 years ago
rebekahELLE - this poem literally moved me to tears. Its so sweet and innocent, and it speaks to me of a long awaited love that has finally been fulfilled. It makes me think of a young virginal maiden in a white (although the dress here was yellow) linen dress, who has kept herself "untainted" until she has found that one true love that will sweep her off her feet and completely fulfill all her romantic notions of a love that is truly pure and divine. Dancing and twirling in a large field of flowers, only to be passionately embraced by her one true love. This was absolutely beautiful. You are extremely talented. I truly felt as if I was in another world - the world of Monet!