Camille Leonie Doncieux

Camille Doncieux, a woman of modest origins who worked as a model. They had a son together, Jean, in 1867. Monet’s family was unwilling to accept Doncieux or their child. They threatened to discontinue Monet’s allowance unless he abandoned Doncieux. Monet stayed with his family but wanted to be at the bedside when his child was born. As a result, his allowance was cut off. Unfortunately, this made life much more difficult for Monet and the three of them suffered extreme financial hardship, sometimes unable to afford food and often unable to afford paint. This led to the proud Monet attempting suicide by throwing himself into the Seine. He did not succeed and Doncieux helped him to recover both mentally and physically. In June of 1870, they were wed. That same year he submitted two paintings to the Salon, Le Déjeuner sur l’Herbe and La Grenouillère. His rejection caused somewhat of a scandal and two of the three individuals on the jury resigned.

In 1876 Camille fell ill with tuberculosis. Yet, in 1878 she gave birth to a second son, Michel. With his wife’s condition worsening, Monet took his family and moved in with the bankrupted Hoschedes in Vetheuil. It was a terrible time for Monet, in addition to his wife’s deteriorating condition, his paintings were doing poorly. He sold 16 paintings for 200 francs each. Giving birth to a child probably did not help Camille’s frail condition and she died a year later on September 5. Claude Monet was extremely depressed following her death; he even painted Camille on her death bed. This depression drove him into his painting and he became determined to create masterpieces.

She was born in Lyon and raised in Paris. Doncieux and Monet met when she was 18 and he married her in 1870, almost three years after the birth of their first son, Jean. She became ill in 1875. When their second son, Michel, was born in March 1878, the birth was a toll on her weakened health. She died on September 5, 1879 after a long illness, probably uterine cancer. Monet painted her on her death bed.