How Much Is Camille (The Woman in the Green Dress) Worth?

Painted for the Paris Salon of 1866, Camille (The Woman in the Green Dress) is a landmark early Monet that helped establish his reputation. It is one of the very few full-length portraits in his oeuvre and a pivotal statement of modern fashion and painterly ambition at a formative moment in his career. Its canonical status is reinforced by sustained scholarly attention, frequent reproduction, and long-term museum stewardship. The Kunsthalle Bremen record confirms the work’s central place in the collection since 1906, and conservation research tied to the 2005–06 exhibition deepened understanding of its execution and critical reception. As a career-defining image, it commands peak-tier attention from connoisseur buyers.

At 231 × 151 cm, Camille is monumental. Full-length portraits by Monet are exceptionally rare, and among those, few possess this level of salon-scale theatricality and finish. Scarcity strongly differentiates it from the many late landscapes that dominate Monet’s auction market. While Water Lilies, London, and grainstack series supply consistent high-value comps, their relative availability contrasts with the singularity of Camille’s format and subject. Rarity at this scale typically invites trophy-level bidding, particularly when the image is instantly recognizable and museum-held. This scarcity premium is a primary driver of the estimate sitting near Monet’s record pricing, despite the market’s usual preference for his late series.

Monet’s auction apex is $110.7m for Meules (2019). Recent sales anchor a robust upper band: $74.01m for a major Nymphéas (Nov 2023), $75.96m for Le Parlement (May 2022), $65.5m for a Water Lilies to an Asian buyer (Nov 2024), and additional strong results in the $30–45m range during 2024–25. These benchmarks confirm sustained global demand for top Monet works. Given Camille’s art-historical weight and rarity, it plausibly prices at record-adjacent levels in today’s market. Our $100–140m range reflects this comp set, with the high end aligning to the inflation-adjusted apex, and the low end reflecting outcome scenarios with tighter bidding or a private-treaty context.

The painting has been in the Kunsthalle Bremen since 1906, a top-tier institutional provenance that amplifies its scholarly profile, exhibition history, and public familiarity. Museum ownership can both elevate desirability (through prestige and documentation) and limit real-time price references (no modern public sale). Should deaccession be permitted, the fresh-to-market nature of a long‑held museum masterpiece typically catalyzes global interest, especially if accompanied by full technical reports and strategic touring. The documented 2005–06 conservation and dedicated exhibition further build buyer confidence in the work’s status and narrative. While export/licensing and policy considerations affect feasibility, pedigree is a net positive for value.

A painting of this scale and date must be underpinned by a current technical report. The 2005 restoration ahead of the Kunsthalle’s Monet und Camille exhibition indicates professional stewardship and close study, which is advantageous for market readiness. Trophy buyers at this level expect transparency about structural condition, conservation history, and pigment stability. Assuming a sound structure and high-quality surface, condition would support the top half of the range; material issues (lining, extensive retouching, or instability) would temper competition. Given the known conservation history, due diligence is unlikely to reveal surprises, but final pricing would still be sensitive to the most recent condition assessment.