This stunning book illustrates for the first time the most important collection of Monet's paintings in the world: the works at the Musee Marmottan Monet in Paris. It takes the reader on a remarkable journey through Monet's life and work, detailing chronologically the development and themes of Monet's paintings: the landscapes, seascapes, portraits, figures and silhouettes, and the Giverny paintings including the famous water lilies. It also features the work of his contemporaries and friends, including Manet, Degas, Gauguin, Renoir, Caillebotte, Berthe Morisot and many others. It is a fascinating overview of Monet's life, times and work and presents more than 100 works. Originally a hunting lodge bought by Jules Marmottan in 1882 which then became a hotel, the Musee Marmottan Monet became a national museum when Paul Marmottan bequeathed his collection of paintings, furniture and bronzes as well as the building to the Academie des Beaux-Arts. It was given its first major work : Monet's Impression, soleil levant, by the daughter of George de Bellio, collector and friend of the Impressionists. Then Michel Monet, son of the painter, bequeathed the works he'd inherited from his father, making it the most important collection of paintings by Claude Monet in the world.