A Cart on the Snowy Road at Honfleur

Monet’s fascination with impressions gleaned from nature is the hallmark of his art. He was influenced by the forces of nature: the variations in light and the changes in the seasons and times of day. In the present painting the light is still illuminating the horizon while growing steadily weaker along the road. The scene shown in the painting is a winter landscape, a less than spectacular window on nature in a season when atmospheric conditions are especially fleeting and fragile, and when even the tiniest variations in the light can alter the scene significantly from one moment to another.