Monet died on December 5th, 1926, at his home in Giverny. Monet once wrote, "My only merit in having painted directly in front of nature, seeking to render my impressions of the most fleeting effects." Most art historians believe that Monet accomplished much more than this: He helped change the world of painting by shaking off the conventions of the past. By dissolving forms in his works, Monet opened the door further abstraction in art, and he is credited with influencing such later artists as Jackson Pollack, Mark Rothko, and Willem de Kooning.