Musée des Impressionnismes Giverny
Just a five-minute walk from Monet's gate, this sleek museum set into a hillside above manicured gardens is the only museum in the world dedicated entirely to the Impressionist movement in all its international breadth. It's a revelation for anyone who thought Giverny began and ended with water lilies.
The Collection and Exhibitions
The permanent collection traces how American Impressionists — artists like Theodore Robinson and John Leslie Breck who literally camped near Monet's garden in the 1880s — absorbed the movement and carried it back across the Atlantic. The curatorial approach is scholarly but never dry.
Two or three major temporary exhibitions run each season, often borrowing from the Musée d'Orsay and international collections. Past shows have paired Monet with Cézanne and explored the Impressionist treatment of gardens across Europe. Check the programme before you visit because the temporary shows alone can justify the trip.
The Building and Gardens
Architect Mark Architects designed the 2009 building to sit discreetly into the hillside, its grass roof virtually invisible from above. Inside, generous skylights flood the galleries with the natural northern light that the Impressionists themselves chased.
The terraced gardens in front of the museum — designed by landscape architect Mark Rudkin — are planted with the same species Monet used in the Clos Normand and are free to enter even when the museum is closed. They make a lovely picnic spot after a morning at the foundation.
Combining Your Visit
The museum and Monet's foundation are a natural pair: buy a combined ticket at a small discount and spend the morning in the water garden, lunch in the village, then spend the afternoon in the museum's cooler galleries.
The museum shop stocks an unusually good selection of art books, exhibition catalogues and quality prints — far superior to the souvenir stalls on the main road.
More of Giverny
Discover where to stay, what to do and the best deals for your trip.
Explore Giverny →
