compromised in any way by the dictats of' a
car and die without having sold a single painting. but Monet was shrewd and did as much as he could to appeal to an audience while pursuing his pioneering ambitions. And thank (iod he did. Never mind that he overlooked a few working
boats or modern houses. or propagated a myth of'
himself working away in all conditions. feverishly putting paint to canvas before the sun went down or the storm passed. when the truth was that he actually of'ten went home to the studio to finish off. a job. He could live and work by his art. It‘s a nice myth and one we like to lap tip from our waterlilly-embla/oned mugs. More fool Us.
The second part of' the exhibition is dedicated to his seascapes painted on the Normandy coast and which led him into new territories. ‘lle‘s thinking in terms of the division of' landscape in terms of' pictorial elementsf says liowle. "l‘he idea of the cliff being the mass. the sea as the plain and the sky as the void. so they’re quite abstract terms.'
The assemblage of' so many unknown paintings will remind people why Monet remains one of the greatest artists ever to have put brush
to canvas. The sense of elements working off
each other ~ the ever shitting interplay between land. air and sea: the way light brings out infinite colours in snow; how every second everything alters and the magic of' showing us this eternally changing world is a legacy to which we are forever indebted. It is the essentialism and ephemeral that so excited Monet and for what he should be known. Not as a designer for pretty keyrings.
And hey. you never know. one day David Beckham might be remembered for being a
wonderful passer ol' the ball and supreme taker of‘
free kicks.
Royal Scottish Academy, 225 6671, 6 Aug-26 Oct, Mon-Wed & Sun 10am-6pm; Thu-Sat 10am-8pm, £8.50 (£5.50); family ticket £20; under 125 free.
market. It is much more romantic to cut off your
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A feast of visual splendour
I After Image Four major female photographers are brought together featuring the defining images of deceased artists Ana Mendieta and Francesca Woodman. Simryn Gill's Da/am and the Vegetation series and works by Cindy Sherman. one of the leading artists of her generation. Frurtmarket Gallery. 225 2383. 2 Aug—27 Sep. daily
7 lam—9.30mi), free.
I Monet: The Seine and the Sea - Vétheuil and Normandy 1878—1883 The newly restored RSA burlding reopens in grand style wrth around 80 paintings by the French impresswnist. Claude Monet. See feature. Royal Scottish Academy 225 667 7, 6 Aug-26 Oct. Mon—Wed 8 Sun 70am—6pm; Thu-Sat 70am—8pm. £8.50 (£5.50); family ticket 620; under 123 free.
I Julian Schnabel lnverleith House pulls out all the stops with new and recent paintings, sculpture and photography by the American artist and film director (Basquiat. Before Night Falls). Julian Schnabel. His signature style of painting on broken plates and crockery and the hype Surrounding him (often self-generated) enabled him to achieve unprecedented commercial and critical success by his late 203. Royal Botanic Garden, Inver/eith House. 552 77 7 7, 9Aug-26 Oct, daily lam—5.30pm, free. I Black Box Edinburgh College of Art teams up with the Edinburgh International Film Festival for an impressive programme of installations by international artists: Issac Julien. Jane and Louise Wilson, Malerie Marder and Francesco Vezzoli. Matthew Barney's epic Cremaster Series will also be screened at the UGC and Cameo. Edinburgh College of Art, 227 6000, 7 Aug-7 Sep. daily 10am—5pm, free.
' ,. -, THE LIST 29