Monet as you never saw him draw before – because customs officials seized his oils
This stunning view of London's Waterloo Bridge is on sale for over a million pounds - and it only exists because Claude Monet's paints were seized by customs officials.
The French impressionist travelled to England in 1901, but was forced to buy some pastels after his equipment was taken at the port.
He hadn't used the medium for some years but sitting on the balcony of room 618 at London's Savoy Hotel he began to create 26 works of art.
At first he wrote to his wife from his sixth floor room and stated that he 'tried in vain to make some sketches in pastel.'
But after a few days he had changed his tune and wrote: 'This amuses me a lot, even though I'm no longer accustomed to it, it occupies me and might be useful.'
Of the 26 pastel works from this period, only one is currently on the market.
It shows the bridge through the fog with a barge in the foreground and chimneys in the distance.
After a week his oil paints and brushes arrived and he set about completing his series of Westminster that he had planned for his visit.
But he later said that working with the pastels in London that week had been a valuable experience and helped his later career.
Works by Monet in pastel on paper are very rare - there are just over 100 known to exist - and the subject matter on the Thames makes this one hugely desirable.
This painting is being shown in several exhibitions in the U.S. and is being sold by London's Trinity House dealers.
Simon Shore, from Trinity House, said: 'Monet came over in January 1901, but all his materials were held up at customs.
'He was annoyed but went to a shop in Charing Cross and bought some pastels and sat on the balcony and drew Waterloo Bridge and Charing Cross Bridge.
'He hadn't used pastels for some time but later said how important that week using them had been.
'He enjoyed the light coming through the fog, but others who were there couldn't see what he was describing.
'He produced 26 works in pastel at this time and this is the only one currently available on the market.
'It was in a collection in Switzerland until 1947 and is now to be shown at the Milwaukee art museum in the U.S. and at our own exhibition in Manhattan.
'The scene shows the bridge and chimneys in the background that were used to produce lead shot.
'It is a very important picture and has commercial appeal because it is by Monet and it is of London.
'Monet is one of the most important artists of all time and his art has never decreased in value so it is a good investment.
'And people are looking to invest in art because other areas are just not attractive.'
Source: Daily Mail Website