The Musée d'Orsay is famous for its exceptional collection of Impressionist paintings - and this is one of earliest examples.
It may seem pretty tame today, but it represents a pivotal shift in the history of art.
Like many avant-garde artists of his time, Monet was tired of painting historical subjects.
He wanted to capture the joy, the beauty and the atmosphere of being outdoors....
To achieve this, he set up a large canvas in his garden, digging a small ditch to adjust its height, and asked his wife, Camille, to pose for him.
When he submitted the painting to the Salon - one of the most prestigious art competitions of the time - the judges hated it :
"Too many young people are determined to pursue in this abominable direction. We need to save them and save art!".
Little did they know that Monet and the Impressionists would take the world by storm and profoundly change our perception of art.
Recently, one of Monet's paintings of haystacks fetched an astounding $110 million, selling in less than 10 minutes!
