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)
La ronde infernale, 1888

James Ensor

La ronde infernale, 1888

Sale Date: March 1, 2014

Auction Closed

Vue du port d'Ostende, 1888

James Ensor

Vue du port d'Ostende, 1888

Sale Date: February 17, 2014

Auction Closed

Salon des cent, exposition James Ensor, 1898

James Ensor

Salon des cent, exposition James Ensor, 1898

Sale Date: February 17, 2014

Auction Closed

Carnaval d'Ostende, 1931

James Ensor

Carnaval d'Ostende, 1931

Sale Date: February 17, 2014

Auction Closed

Les mauvais médecins, 1895

James Ensor

Les mauvais médecins, 1895

Sale Date: February 17, 2014

Auction Closed

Le ballet et L’enterrement des masques (2..., 1892

James Ensor

Le ballet et L’enterrement des masques (2..., 1892

Sale Date: February 11, 2014

Auction Closed

Gentelman, 1881

James Ensor

Gentelman, 1881

Sale Date: January 21, 2014

Auction Closed

Theatre scene

James Ensor

Theatre scene

Sale Date: January 21, 2014

Auction Closed

Vue d'Ostende en, 1888

James Ensor

Vue d'Ostende en, 1888

Sale Date: December 16, 2013

Auction Closed

Le bal fantastique, 1889

James Ensor

Le bal fantastique, 1889

Sale Date: December 16, 2013

Auction Closed

Portrait de Frise, botaniste, 1886

James Ensor

Portrait de Frise, botaniste, 1886

Sale Date: December 10, 2013

Auction Closed

Le Roi Peste, 1895

James Ensor

Le Roi Peste, 1895

Sale Date: December 10, 2013

Auction Closed

Christ descendant aux enfers, 1895

James Ensor

Christ descendant aux enfers, 1895

Sale Date: December 10, 2013

Auction Closed

Candélabre et vase, 1888

James Ensor

Candélabre et vase, 1888

Sale Date: December 10, 2013

Auction Closed

Sous-bois à Groenendael, 1888

James Ensor

Sous-bois à Groenendael, 1888

Sale Date: December 1, 2013

Auction Closed

La colèr

James Ensor

La colèr

Sale Date: December 1, 2013

Auction Closed

Les Péchés Capitaux dominés par la Mort, 1903

James Ensor

Les Péchés Capitaux dominés par la Mort, 1903

Sale Date: December 4, 2013

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Masques intrigues, 1904

James Ensor

Masques intrigues, 1904

Sale Date: December 12, 2013

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Le Botaniste scandinave Frise, 1886

James Ensor

Le Botaniste scandinave Frise, 1886

Sale Date: November 16, 2013

Auction Closed

Denier de César, 1888

James Ensor

Denier de César, 1888

Sale Date: December 5, 2013

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Ferme flamande

James Ensor

Ferme flamande

Sale Date: November 29, 2013

Auction Closed

Portrait of Hector Denis, 1890

James Ensor

Portrait of Hector Denis, 1890

Sale Date: November 30, 2013

Auction Closed

Flaying a Convict, 1888

James Ensor

Flaying a Convict, 1888

Sale Date: November 30, 2013

Auction Closed

My Dead Father, 1888

James Ensor

My Dead Father, 1888

Sale Date: November 30, 2013

Auction Closed