The Israel Museum, a treasure trove of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist masterpieces

Just as wine has a year, paintings have a particularly fertile year. Even Vincent van Gogh, who died at the age of 37 after leaving more than 800 oil paintings in less than 10 years of painting, was in the era of Arles in Southern France and the subsequent Saint-Rémy (which had its ups and downs as if in response to the ebb and flow of van Gogh's mental state). Even in the case of Paul Gauguin, where the waves of private life are rarely reflected in his work, the Tahitian era was a hit year. Claude Monet left over 2,000 oil paintings in his 86-year life, but when it comes to his series of water lilies, 1907 was his hit year. Both of these paintings are in the collection of the Israeli Museum, and are a highlight of the Modern and Contemporary Art Department.

Monet bought a rented house in Giverny in 1890, and three years later he bought land on the south side of the property and dug a pond, which he extended to a circumference of 200 meters in 1901. The pond was built with a drum bridge inspired by Japanese ukiyo-e, and poplar trees, weeping willows, irises and roses were reflected in the water mirror. Water lilies bloom only during the summer day. In the summer of 1907, Monet continued to work in the strong summer sunshine. His work on the water lilies reached its peak in terms of both quantity and quality that year. The following year, Monet experienced the first signs of discomfort in his overworked eyes, and was later diagnosed with cataracts.