James Ensor

(Belgian, 1860–1949)

James Ensor was a Belgian painter and important influence known for his macabre and brightly colored depictions of masked skeletons, seascapes, and carnivals. In works such as Christ’s Entry into Brussels in 1889 (1888), Ensor explored both autobiographical and social themes through thickly painted patches of color and grotesque caricatures. “Medicinal sea, west-national sea, adored mother, I want in a fresh bouquet, without surrealist ways, to celebrate your one hundred faces, your surfaces, your facets, your dimples, your Rubescent bottoms, your diamond crests, your sapphire tops, your qualities, your delights, your profound charms,” he once mused. Born on April 13, 1860 in Ostend, Belgium, Ensor went on to study at the Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, where he rebelled against the strict instruction and befriended like-minded students such as Théo van Rysselberghe. After selling the entire contents of his studio in the 1890s do to a personal crisis, Ensor was resolute to give up painting, though he returned to it after only a few short years. By the early 20th century, he had become widely known throughout Europe by artists such as Paul KleeGeorge Grosz, and Alfred Kubin. Ensor died on November 19, 1949 in Ostend, Belgium. Today, the artist’s works are held in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, the Neue Pinakothek in Munich, and the Tate Gallery in London, among others.

James Ensor Artworks

James Ensor (4,479 results)
Masques intrigués, 1904

James Ensor

Masques intrigués, 1904

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

Les masques scandalisés, 1895

James Ensor

Les masques scandalisés, 1895

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

Hector Denis, 1890

James Ensor

Hector Denis, 1890

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

La mare aux peupliers, 1889

James Ensor

La mare aux peupliers, 1889

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

La fête au moulin (La kermesse au moulin), 1889

James Ensor

La fête au moulin (La kermesse au moulin), 1889

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

L'orage, 1889

James Ensor

L'orage, 1889

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

Supplice de St. Barthélemy (L'écorché), 1888

James Ensor

Supplice de St. Barthélemy (L'écorché), 1888

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

Sentier à Groenendael, 1888

James Ensor

Sentier à Groenendael, 1888

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

Sentier à Groenendael, 1888

James Ensor

Sentier à Groenendael, 1888

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

Coup de vent à la lisière, 1888

James Ensor

Coup de vent à la lisière, 1888

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

La prise d'une ville étrange, 1888

James Ensor

La prise d'une ville étrange, 1888

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

La prise d'une ville étrange, 1888

James Ensor

La prise d'une ville étrange, 1888

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

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Vue de Nieuport (Le Chenal de Nieuport), 1888

James Ensor

Vue de Nieuport (Le Chenal de Nieuport), 1888

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

Vue de Nieuport (Le Chenal de Nieuport), 1888

James Ensor

Vue de Nieuport (Le Chenal de Nieuport), 1888

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

La Crypte, 1888

James Ensor

La Crypte, 1888

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

Maisons boulevard Anspach à Bruxelles 3, 1888

James Ensor

Maisons boulevard Anspach à Bruxelles 3, 1888

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

Vieillard (Portrait de Frise), 1886

James Ensor

Vieillard (Portrait de Frise), 1886

Sale Date: November 29, 2014

Auction Closed

Pâleurs. Roses sur roses ....., 1941

James Ensor

Pâleurs. Roses sur roses ....., 1941

Sale Date: December 4, 2014

Auction Closed

L'entrée du Christ à Bruxelles, 1898

James Ensor

L'entrée du Christ à Bruxelles, 1898

Sale Date: December 4, 2014

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Lanceur de disque , après une statue antique, 1878

James Ensor

Lanceur de disque , après une statue antique, 1878

Sale Date: December 4, 2014

Auction Closed

Nieuport

James Ensor

Nieuport

Sale Date: December 3, 2014

Auction Closed

Les Toits à Ostende (Die Dächer von Ostende), 1903

James Ensor

Les Toits à Ostende (Die Dächer von Ostende), 1903

Sale Date: November 27, 2014

Auction Closed

Le Pont du Bois à Ostende, 1889

James Ensor

Le Pont du Bois à Ostende, 1889

Sale Date: December 4, 2014

Auction Closed

La Crypte, 1888

James Ensor

La Crypte, 1888

Sale Date: December 4, 2014

Auction Closed