Lycée Claude-Monet

The Lycée Claude-Monet occupies ground that holds a volatile history. Before the school was completed in 1955, this site served as a local gasworks. The construction process itself was exceptionally slow, spanning several decades because it was interrupted by both the Great Depression and the Second World War. When the institution was finally established, the decision to name it after the impressionist master led to a unique artistic trade. The artist's son, Michel Monet, donated a water lily painting to the state in exchange for the school bearing his father's name.