When we hear the last name Monet, we think of Claude Monet, the French impressionist painter known for his glowing depictions of lily pads and flowers. But there is another Monet, Blanche Hoschedé-Monet, who was an amazing painter in her own right, even though she is tragically overlooked 80 years after her death.  Blanche was Claude Monet’s step-daughter, assistant, and student of his art. Monet taught her all he knew about painting in hopes that she would become an incredible artist too. Blanche lived an amazing life, painting through two world wars after Claude had passed. Her paintings often painted similar subjects as her step-father, but her paintings were often more detailed, yet lacked the glowing transcendence of her more famous stepfather. 

Blanche came into Monet’s life at the age of 11. Her father, Ernest Hoschedé, was a connoisseur of the arts, who took an interest in Monet’s innovative, impressionist artworks. Many years later, after Hoschedé had died, Monet had married Hoschedé’s wife Alice. Monet’s first wife Camille had died prior after giving birth. When Monet married Alice Hoschedé, Blanche Hoschedé became Blanche Hoschedé-Monet, and was thereafter Monet’s stepdaughter.

In 1883, Blanche had become an avid painter, and this greatly delighted Monet. They had begun painting together and going on long outdoor painting expeditions. She had grown immensely with the training of her step-father, and was painting with many similar techniques and using much of the same painting vocabulary. The two would often paint the same landscapes, and include each other in their works, because they painted together so often.

In 1897, Blanche Hoschedé-Monet married Jean Monet, her stepbrother. Together they moved to Rouen, France. There Blanche had many exhibits in places such as the prestigious Salon des Indépendants in Paris and the he Salon de la Société des Artistes Rouennais. Unfortunately Jean died a couple years later of a stroke, which left Blanche widowed and sad. Two years later, in 1914, Blanche moved back to Giverny to care for Monet. During this time, she painted more still lifes (such as flowers, vases, copper pots) because of the ongoing battles of World War I raging in France. After the war ended, she returned to painting the dreamy landscapes of France and elsewhere in Europe. 

Blanche Hoschedé-Monet really has not gotten the recognition she deserves in the art world today, with not many people knowing that she even exists. Though she was constantly overshadowed by her step-father, she was praised by many critics about how wonderful her artwork was throughout the 1930s-40s. While her stepfathers’ paintings command tens or hundreds of millions of dollars, Blanche’s paintings are typically sold at auction for less than $100,000. 

Blanche Hoschedé-Monet continued to paint until her death in 1947 at the age of 82. She died of what was most likely cancer, in Giverny, France at what had been Claude Monet’s residence. Contemporaries indicated that she was fantastic person, with such an interesting life: from her first meeting Monet at age 11, to experiencing her own family tragedies, to being able to carry on Claude Monet’s legacy through her own painting and skill.