French Artists in Exile: Monet, Pissarro, and the London Years (1870–1871)
- Art d'Histoire
- May 29
- 3 min read
The Franco-Prussian War of 1870 did not just redraw the map of Europe; it displaced a generation of artists who would go on to define Modernism. As the Prussians advanced on Paris and the capital fell under siege, painters like Claude Monet and Camille Pissarro joined the exodus across the Channel. Their stay in London was brief—barely a year—but it was a pivotal moment where financial survival met artistic discovery in the fog of the Thames.
The Flight from the Siege
By September 1870, the situation in France was dire. The "butcher’s shop" of war had arrived at the artists' doorsteps; Monet later recounted how Prussian soldiers occupied his house, using his canvases as aprons or throwing them into the mud. To escape the chaos, a community of London exiles formed in the English capital.
Monet arrived with uncertain prospects, while Pissarro, who had fled Louveciennes leaving 1,500 paintings behind to be ransacked, settled in Lower Norwood. They were joined by Daubigny and Bonvin, creating a French enclave that gathered at the Café Royal or on Old Compton Street, longing for their "great, hospitable" France while navigating a city where, as Pissarro complained, there was "no art, everything is business."
The Merchant of New Bond Street
Survival in London would have been impossible without Paul Durand-Ruel. The dealer had sent thirty-five crates of paintings to London just before the borders closed. In December 1870, he opened a gallery on New Bond Street, ostensibly under the patronage of a "Society of French Artists."
It was Daubigny who orchestrated the meeting that would change the course of art history. Encountering a destitute Monet, Daubigny declared, "I will bring you a merchant." Durand-Ruel immediately bought the works of the unknown painter, and later those of Pissarro, paying 300 francs for a Monet and 200 for a Pissarro. This relationship is recorded in the Durand-Ruel account books, marking the beginning of a patronage that kept the artists from starving during their exile.
Painting the Fog
Despite the hardship, London offered a unique visual laboratory. Monet, without a studio, painted outdoors in the parks, while Pissarro captured the suburban snow of Norwood and the steam trains at Lordship Lane. They were fascinated by the city's atmospheric effects—the mist, the snow, and the heavy industrial smog.
Monet was particularly drawn to the Thames, painting the newly completed Palace of Westminster and the Victoria Embankment. These works, featuring a restricted palette of greys and blues, suggest a dialogue with Whistler's river views. However, while they painted the Seine and Thames with a fresh eye, they found the doors of the Royal Academy firmly closed. As Pissarro bitterly recalled, they were "thrown out" of the official English exhibitions, reinforcing their status as outsiders.
The Turner Controversy
The exile also brought the Impressionists face-to-face with the English landscape tradition. Visiting the National Gallery and Dulwich College, they studied Gainsborough, Reynolds, and "Old Crome." They were particularly struck by Constable and Turner, admiring their analysis of light and their ability to capture fleeting effects.
However, the extent of this influence became a subject of debate. Paul Signac later argued that Turner’s use of divided colour revolutionised their technique, teaching them to create white snow using multicoloured touches. Pierre-Auguste Renoir, however, violently disagreed. He despised Turner, comparing his colours to "nougat" and "sour sweets" used by confectioners. For Renoir, the notion that the French school was born from English "sugar" was an insult, even if Pissarro and Monet freely admitted that the English masters had confirmed their search for plein air light.
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