James Ensor
(Belgian, 1860–1949)
Biography
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 Klee, George 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.
Most Expensive Artwork Sold at Auction
James Ensor Artworks
.jpg "Portrait de Hector Denis (Portrait of Hector , 1890")
James Ensor
Portrait de Hector Denis (Portrait of Hector , 1890
Sale Date: March 19, 2014
Auction Closed
.jpg "Portrait d'Ernest Rousseau (Portrait of..., 1887")
James Ensor
Portrait d'Ernest Rousseau (Portrait of..., 1887
Sale Date: March 19, 2014
Auction Closed
.jpg "Mon Père mort (My dead Father), 1888")
.jpg "La Dormeuse (The Sleeper), 1887")
.jpg "Les Toits à Ostende (Roofs at Ostend), 1903")
.jpg "La Musique rue de Flandre (Music in the rue..., 1890")
James Ensor
La Musique rue de Flandre (Music in the rue..., 1890
Sale Date: March 19, 2014
Auction Closed
.jpg "Boulevard Van Iseghem à Ostende (Boulevard..., 1889")
James Ensor
Boulevard Van Iseghem à Ostende (Boulevard..., 1889
Sale Date: March 19, 2014
Auction Closed
.jpg "L'Hôtel de Ville d'Audenaerde (Town Hall of..., 1888")
James Ensor
L'Hôtel de Ville d'Audenaerde (Town Hall of..., 1888
Sale Date: March 19, 2014
Auction Closed
.jpg "Maison Boulevard Anspach à Bruxelles (House..., 1888")
James Ensor
Maison Boulevard Anspach à Bruxelles (House..., 1888
Sale Date: March 19, 2014
Auction Closed
.jpg "Rue du Bon-Secours, à Bruxelles (Rue du..., 1887")
James Ensor
Rue du Bon-Secours, à Bruxelles (Rue du..., 1887
Sale Date: March 19, 2014
Auction Closed
.jpg "Mon Portrait Squelettisé (Skeletonized..., 1889")
James Ensor
Mon Portrait Squelettisé (Skeletonized..., 1889
Sale Date: March 19, 2014
Auction Closed
.jpg "L'Artiste par lui-même (Self-Portrait), 1886")
.jpg "Candélabre et vase (+ Ferme à Leffinghe; 2..., 1888")
James Ensor
Candélabre et vase (+ Ferme à Leffinghe; 2..., 1888
Sale Date: March 1, 2014
Auction Closed
.jpg "La cathédrale (1ère planche), 1886")
.jpg "La cathédrale (1ste. plaat), 1886")
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