Blanche Hoschedé-Monet, “The Bank of the Seine (Bord de la Seine),” ca. 1897-1910. Oil on canvas, 23.75 x 29 in. (60.3 x 73.7 cm). Collection of Gary J. and Kathy Z. Anderson
Last year, Impressionism marked its 150th anniversary. At the forefront of these celebrations was Claude Monet, one of the movement’s most coveted pioneers and the artist behind such masterpieces as Impressionism, Sunrise, Water Lilies, and Haystacks. Left out entirely was someone very close to him, and equally adept: the forgotten Monet, that is, Blanche Hoschedé-Monet. As Monet’s stepdaughter, and subsequently his daughter-in-law, Hoschedé-Monet has consistently been overlooked by art history, represented in few collections and even fewer exhibitions. The Eskenazi Museum of Art in Bloomington, Ind., is looking to change that.
The museum’s Blanche Hoschedé-Monet in the Light gathers more than 40 paintings in the first monographic exhibition of Hoschedé-Monet in the United States. Each work reveals the artist’s exceptional command over light, form, and atmosphere, whether it be through a tranquil scene of the Seine in the early morning, or one of grainstacks doused in a subtle pink hue. When considering her paintings, traces of Monet’s influence emerge: delicate color palettes, hazy forms, and an almost romantic infatuation with nature.
This shouldn’t necessarily come as a surprise, given that stepfather and stepdaughter often accompanied one another for plein air expeditions, painting from similar landscapes in the open air. Where Monet served as a critical mentor for Hoschedé-Monet, she assisted him by transporting his canvases and supplies, typically with the help of a wheelbarrow, as her brother Jean-Pierre wrote in his 1961 biography of her. Even so, upon closer inspection, there remain several stylistic distinctions between Monet and his stepdaughter.
“Right off the bat, they do resemble closely Monet’s paintings,” Haley Pierce, the museum’s assistant curator of European art and organizer of the exhibition, told artnet. “When you see Hoschedé-Monet’s work in person you can parse out those differences.”
These differences primarily concern process and overall mood. In contrast to Monet’s preference for the ephemeral and intuitive, Hoschedé-Monet painted canvases that were more balanced and intentional. Compare, say, Monet’s 1897 painting Morning on the Seine with that of Hoschedé-Monet’s. The former composition relishes in evocative though not entirely realistic colors, favoring rich purples, pinks, and blues. Monet’s brushstroke, too, is loose, less controlled, capturing the contours rather than substance of his subject, allowing for a dreamier landscape. Hoschedé-Monet, on the other hand, renders her surroundings with sharper lines and a more faithful color palette.
“She’s not attempting to paint the same exact thing,” Pierce added. “She’s really trying to make the composition her own.”
Hoschedé-Monet’s great-nephew, the art historian Philippe Piguet, held a similar view: “Her touch is more emphatic, out of concern for capturing what she saw on her canvas rather than what she felt.”
How, though, did Monet and Hoschedé-Monet come into one another’s lives? Blanche Hoschedé-Monet in the Light addresses this as well, through sketchbooks, photographs, and letters. Her father, Ernest Hoschedé, was a patron of countless beloved artists, including Édouard Manet, Auguste Renoir, and, of course, Monet. Eventually, Hoschedé stumbled upon financial difficulties, upon which Monet invited the Hoschedé family to live with him, his wife, and his two sons in Vétheuil. It was only later, as widows, that Monet and Alice Hoschedé officially married, cementing her daughter and Monet’s lifelong connection.
“Without [Hoschedé-Monet], Claude Monet would have lived in an isolation that would have killed him,” René Gimpel, an art dealer, once wrote. “It was she who kept him alive for us, posterity must not forget her.”
Blanche Hoschedé-Monet in the Light is currently on view at Eskenazi Museum of Art through June 15, 2025.
At the Eskenazi Museum of Art in Bloomington, Ind., Claude Monet’s stepdaughter, Blanche Hoschedé-Monet, is finally gaining the recognition she deserves.
Installation view of “Blanche Hoschedé-Monet in the Light” exhibition at the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University Bloomington. (Photo: Shanti Knight)
Blanche Hoschedé-Monet, “The Small Grainstacks (Les Moyettes),” ca. 1894. Oil on canvas, 18 1/8 x 22 1/16 in. (46 x 56 cm). Collection of Alice and Rick Johnson
On view through June 15, 2025, Blanche Hoschedé-Monet in the Light gathers more than 40 paintings by the artist, showcasing the points of similarity and distinction between her and her stepfather.
Installation view of “Blanche Hoschedé-Monet in the Light” exhibition at the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University Bloomington. (Photo: Shanti Knight)
Blanche Hoschedé-Monet, “Morning on the Seine (Matinée sur la Seine),” ca. 1896. Oil on canvas, 18 ¾ x 23 13/16 in. (73 x 60.5 cm). Collection of Alice and Rick Johnson
Installation view of “Blanche Hoschedé-Monet in the Light” exhibition at the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University Bloomington. (Photo: Shanti Knight)
Exhibition Information
Blanche Hoschedé-Monet
Blanche Hoschedé-Monet in the Light
February 14–June 15, 2025
The Eskenazi Museum of Art at Indiana University Bloomington
1133 E. Seventh Street, Bloomington, IN 47405
The Eskenazi Museum of Art: Website | Instagram
My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by the Eskenazi Museum of Art.
Sources: The Other Monet—Blanche Hoschedé-Monet, That Is—Gets Her First-Ever U.S. Show; ‘The forgotten Monet’: How masterful paintings by the artist’s stepdaughter are finally getting recognition; Blanche Hoschedé-Monet in the Light
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