Eternal Gaze: The Timekeeper of Antibes

Claude Monet’s  The Old Fort at Antibes originally portrayed the golden Mediterranean light dancing upon the walls of the historic fortress, surrounded by the calm embrace of the sea. This new surreal interpretation takes that serene setting and bends time and perception, turning it into a metaphysical exploration of existence, memory, and the flow of time. 

The landscape of Antibes is still present—the blue waters stretch toward the horizon, and the fortified structure remains, now half-bathed in mist, as if it is caught between dimensions. However, this is no longer merely a place—it is a realm where reality bends into consciousness, where time drips from the sky like melting gold, and where the act of seeing itself shapes what is real. A massive, reflective eye dominates the left side of the composition, its form both organic and metallic, as though it belongs to a being beyond human comprehension. The eye is not just an observer—it is a portal, a mirror into time, reflecting memories, dreams, and lost realities. 

A staircase rises from the sea, leading not to the fort, but into an infinite unknown. The ascent is surreal—solid yet floating, inviting the viewer to step beyond what is familiar. An elephant, a symbol of wisdom and memory, gracefully climbs this stairway, its journey both symbolic and eternal. The presence of the elephant in this dreamscape suggests a bridge between the past and the present, a reminder that history is never truly gone but is instead carried forward in the minds of those who remember. 

Above, a golden clock hangs from the twisted branches of a barren tree. Time drips from its frame like liquid amber, suggesting the inevitability of change and decay. This melting clock, reminiscent of Dali’s surrealism, reinforces the idea that time here is fluid—it does not obey the rigid rules of reality but instead bends and folds according to emotion, memory, and perception. The sky swirls around it, an ethereal vortex of blues, violets, and soft golds, creating a celestial atmosphere where past and future collide. 

Monet’s use of color in the original work was rooted in capturing light, but here, colors take on symbolic meaning. The deep blues of the water suggest depth and the subconscious, while the golden hues represent fleeting moments of clarity and enlightenment. The purples and soft violets in the sky evoke a dreamlike state, an in-between space where time dissolves. The metallic and reflective tones in the eye add an element of futuristic vision, suggesting an omnipresent awareness that watches over everything. 

As an artist, I wanted to take Monet’s luminous, fleeting impression of Antibes and transform it into something eternal—something that reflects the human experience of time, perception, and memory. The fort, once solid and grounded, now floats in an ambiguous space, existing not in a single moment but in all moments at once. The eye represents the act of seeing, of remembering, of searching for meaning in the shifting sands of time. The elephant embodies wisdom, reminding us that the past is not lost, but carried forward with each step. 

"Eternal Gaze: The Timekeeper of Antibes" is more than a reimagining of Monet’s work—it is an invitation to contemplate the nature of time, to see beyond the physical, and to step into the unknown. In this world, reality is fluid, memories are alive, and the boundaries between past, present, and future no longer exist. It asks us to consider: What do we remember? What do we leave behind? And who, or what, is watching over it all?