Monet

I was so excited to get an advanced reader copy of this book! This is how the biography of an artist's life should be done - gorgeously rendered in a graphic novel format. The illustrations are outstanding, and the pacing is perfect. The emotion is conveyed so effectively in the drawings, that the words are not absolutely necessary to understand the story being told.

I love this, the story and the section at the end with Monet's paintings.

Beautiful!

I devoured this beautiful work done by Salva Rubio and Ricard Fernandez! Drawn to, deeply moved by and thoroughly enchanted by the Impressionists since I can remember, this graphic novel is a magnificent contemporary take on a period style of art that challenged the status quo of its own time.

Fully aware that liberties were taken with certain details, and art work pieces appear to represent atmospheric depth more than chronological veracity, the whole reading experience was a satisfying exploration of colour, the play of light, the power of friendship and love, and the tenacity of a man who endured enormous challenges to see the day when his artistic vision would be accepted and embraced.

Lush and gorgeous work done here, and I am very excited for the next collaboration done by these two talented gentlemen!

..Now...if you need me, I'll be hungrily poring through these illustrations a few (hundred) more times...it absolutely deserves a second, or third, or fourth, (or umpteenth) perusal! This was really a lovely piece of work! Well done!

Excellent graphic novel depicts Monet's life.

A fascinating chronicle that brings one face to face with Monet's life, his struggles and his achievements. I found the graphic presentation challenging at the beginning, the background coloring seemed to swamp things but as Monet's life unfolded I came to appreciate those shadings that seemed for me to reflect the stages of his life and along the way incorporates references to the styles of Monet and his companions in the search for a new way of seeing. The illustrating is fantastic. There's a richness that the artist EFA (Ricard Fernandez) beings to bear. I'm awed. Sometimes I find the comments in the word balloons a little stilted, but to me that always is a product of this medium.
Graphic novels are not easy reading. I find they require more concentration than the written word. What I really enjoyed was that this medium, by its nature is in the first person. The engagement with the story is just so very immediate. Monet comes alive.
I must say that I really enjoyed looking at Monet's life through graphic spectacles. Using the visual to explore the visual is brilliant.
This is not a scholarly tome although obviously based on solid research. It is a wonderful biographical investigation, a great addition for a collector of works about Monet, or a collector of graphic novels. I would certainly add it to a school library collection, or give it as a present with a difference for someone I know would enjoy it.

A NetGalley ARC
(November 2017)

You couldn't pick a better subject for a graphic novel. Love it!

Thoroughly enjoyable, not happy, but enjoyable. It’s well written, and the artwork is stellar. It’s interesting to see the palette choices. If you’re familiar with the artwork of Monet, you’ll see the paintings develop. If you’re not familiar with the life of Monet, you will be.

Monet: Itinerant of Light is a graphic novel telling us the life and story of one of my favorite artists, Claude Monet. If you’ve ever found yourself wondering about his life or at least wishing for more background for his painting history, then this is certainly a good start.
Obviously by the very nature of it being a graphic novel, it can only go so deep as a biography as an artist. Even so, it does a wonderful job on the whole, with the writers and artists trying to help set the tone for how Monet was feeling during a specific time, based on the events occurring in his life. In this way they tied everything together, giving us one cohesive piece of work and (hopefully) understanding of the painter most of us have at least heard of.
EFA did an absolutely stunning job imitating Monet’s works, something I’m having trouble getting over, and thus feel the need to mention. His use of illustrations (again, in Monet’s very own style) to tell us the struggles and stories of Monet…it’s simply breathtaking. I can’t say enough good things about this or even the slight artistic choices he made throughout.
The author, Salva Rubio did a pretty decent job of presenting us the facts as unbiased as possible (which I know can be very difficult when writing a biography). While the way I’m describing it makes it sound dry, let me assure you that isn’t the case. Rubio simply isn’t passing judgment or praise on any of Monet’s actions, merely repeating what research has been turned up as facts (and doing so in a fairly concise manner).
I hope Rubio and EFA team up to create biographies for other artists out there; I would absolutely love to see that. In the mean time I’ll have to settle for simply being happy that this one exists.

This was a great way to get a primer into the life and works of Monet - I knew sketchy details, but nothing about his personal life, and all the financial ups and downs they all had. The book cleverly and sympathetically adopts many Monet works - and many other impressionist techniques - to convey the story, and for a biography fit for a casual browse this brief look was just what the docteur would have ordered. Four and a half stars.