Claude Monet

Claude Monet, the father of Impressionism, was a man obsessed with light, water, and, apparently, very clean foliage. This revolutionary artist, who gave the movement its name with his painting *Impression, Sunrise*, started his career drawing caricatures of his teachers. He was so dedicated to his craft that he battled poverty, depression, and even a failed suicide attempt in the Seine. Rumor has it his famous Giverny gardens were tended by six gardeners, one of whom was allegedly employed just to dust the water lilies each morning. While perhaps a stretch, it speaks to the character of a man who, even on his wife's deathbed, was reportedly analyzing the colors of her fading life—a dedication both astonishing and, let's be honest, a little bit terrifying.