
Google Said ‘oeuvre’, not I 😉
Jenny Montigny preferred to paint everyday scenes from the countryside and village life in Sint-Martens-Latem. As here in “The Gardener”, these snapshots are not a reason to visualize social abuses or emphasize the weight of labor. On the contrary, Montigny always painted a harmonious society. The subject itself seems rather a pretext for painting itself, for her search to capture the intensity of light on the canvas. Exceptional for her oeuvre is the monumental format of “The Gardener”. The horizon line is relatively high so that two thirds of the image area is dominated by the diversity of pink, red and orange yellow. The whole canvas looks like a firework of red and pink shades that also colors the sky and the figures.
Quote from Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent (via google translate)
Look at the Water!!
To me, the most amazing parts of this painting are the sections where the pouring water falls to the flowers. HOW DID SHE CAPTURE THE MAGIC OF FALLING WATER?
The jewel-like glimmer is gorgeous – she must have observed the optical distortions of light and water closely to be able to show this quality. Frankly, I would purchase this image detail (below) as a stand alone work of abstract art if I saw it on the wall for sale.
Needless to say, I need to know a lot more about this artist…more to come in future months.

Click for Enlarged Detail:
![24Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/24screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![20Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/20screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![21Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/21screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![1Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/1screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![8Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/8screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![10Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/10screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![19Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/19screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![26Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/26screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![16Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/16screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![13Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/13screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![7Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/7screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![25Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/25screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![12Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/12screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![S5creenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/s5creenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![2Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/2screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![14Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/14screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![15Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/15screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![3Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/3screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![22Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/22screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![17Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/17screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![18Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/18screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![4Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/4screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![27Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/27screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![11Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/11screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![23Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/23screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![6Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/6screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
![9Screenshot_2018-10-30 Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener jpg (JPEG Image, 8688 × 5792 pixels) Jenny Montigny, "The Gardener", 180 x 245 cm,Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons], (detail)](https://atsunnyside.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/9screenshot_2018-10-30-jenny_montigny_-_the_gardener-jpg-jpeg-image-8688-c397-5792-pixels.jpg?w=496&h=496&crop=1)
Details:
- Jenny Montigny
- “The Gardener“
- Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent
- 180x 245 cm
- [Public domain or CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)%5D, from Wikimedia Commons]
- Jeanne (Jenny) Montigny (8 December 1875, Ghent – 31 October 1937, Deurle) was a Belgian painter and pastelist. She was a long time student and mistress of artist Emile Claus.
Sources
- Museum of Fine Arts, Ghent, Belgium, “Jenny Montigny, The Gardener”, http://www.vlaamsekunstcollectie.be/collection.aspx?p=0848cab7-2776-4648-9003-25957707491a&inv=1913-K , (accessed 29 Oct 2018).
- Wikipedia contributors, “Jenny Montigny,” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jenny_Montigny&oldid=856308805 (accessed October 30, 2018).
- Wikimedia Commons contributors, “File:Jenny Montigny – The Gardener.jpg,” Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Jenny_Montigny_-_The_Gardener.jpg&oldid=319461979 (accessed October 30, 2018).
More Information
- For a flash-based formal visual analysis of this and two other Montigny paintings, go to Painting Analysis.com
Thanks for Reading! 🙂
The End
I have never taken an art class and I am no artist myself but I do love – and am often drawn to – beautiful works of art. I love how you reverently break down a painting that I already know I love and show me all the reasons why I love it…❤️
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lolol, Patti, what a generous comment! I have absolutely no training of any kind in art, but have always promised myself that I would learn ‘someday’. Well, that has not happened yet, but I am grateful to have a computer that opens the whole world up to me, one favorite painting or artist at a time. I truly appreciate your visit and your kind words. Thank you! 🙂
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Wow…you are a good self learner…and you teach me (and I’m sure others) as well. I figured you had an art degree 😊👍❤️
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lolol….I am learning as I blog, and I am such a nerd that it is fun….even when I try out shiny ‘new’ buttons just to see what happens and find that I have published 560 posts at once from Tumblr to my brand new wordpress blog. That was in March 2018, and I am still trying to recover! But each day is an adventure, and I do meet the nicest people! 🙂
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😂😂😂
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Beautiful.
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I appreciate your comment, Rosaliene. Thanks for visiting. 🙂
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Painting looks very happy along with the gardener himself ;;)))
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Yes, the gardener seems so satisfied with his work, doesn’t he?! I enjoy seeing a painting of people obviously pleased with their labor, all in living color. Downright Happy. 🙂
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