Claude Monet transformed light and colour into art. In 1874 his Impression, Sunrise caused uproar among the critics and a revolution in painting. His inventiveness was inexhaustible: with the Haystacks, Poplars, Cathedrals and, finally, the enchanting Water-lilies of Givemy, Monet captured light in all its fleeting qualities. At last, almost blind - I fear the dark more than death- he feverishly produced near-abstract landscapes of water and reflection, a vision of nature that paved the way for the art of our own day. This book traces his career.