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)
Maisonettes à Mariakerke, 1888

James Ensor

Maisonettes à Mariakerke, 1888

Sale Date: March 22, 2013

Auction Closed

Petite vue de Mariakerke, 1899

James Ensor

Petite vue de Mariakerke, 1899

Sale Date: March 22, 2013

Auction Closed

Petites figures bizarres, 1888

James Ensor

Petites figures bizarres, 1888

Sale Date: March 9, 2013

Auction Closed

Oostendse visser, 1900

James Ensor

Oostendse visser, 1900

Sale Date: March 9, 2013

Auction Closed

La cathédrale 1re planche

James Ensor

La cathédrale 1re planche

Sale Date: March 9, 2013

Auction Closed

Chinoiseries, fleurs, vases et éventails, 1915–1919

James Ensor

Chinoiseries, fleurs, vases et éventails, 1915–1919

Sale Date: March 9, 2013

Auction Closed

Les Patineurs, 1889

James Ensor

Les Patineurs, 1889

Sale Date: March 7, 2013

Auction Closed

Portrait of a young woman, 1885

James Ensor

Portrait of a young woman, 1885

Sale Date: June 16, 2012

Auction Closed

Boulevard Anspach, 1888

James Ensor

Boulevard Anspach, 1888

Sale Date: March 2, 2013

Auction Closed

Acacia, 1888

James Ensor

Acacia, 1888

Sale Date: March 2, 2013

Auction Closed

La pieuvre et Le fantôme (2 works), 1888

James Ensor

La pieuvre et Le fantôme (2 works), 1888

Sale Date: February 25, 2013

Auction Closed

La crypte, 1886

James Ensor

La crypte, 1886

Sale Date: January 27, 2013

Auction Closed

Vue d'intérieur

James Ensor

Vue d'intérieur

Sale Date: January 26, 2013

Auction Closed

Lady Godiva, 1933

James Ensor

Lady Godiva, 1933

Sale Date: January 15, 2013

Auction Closed

Iston, Pouffamatus, Cracozie et Transmouf..., 1886

James Ensor

Iston, Pouffamatus, Cracozie et Transmouf..., 1886

Sale Date: December 15, 2012

Auction Closed

La gourmandise (study), 1898

James Ensor

La gourmandise (study), 1898

Sale Date: November 26, 2012

Auction Closed

Untitled

James Ensor

Untitled

Sale Date: December 5, 2012

Auction Closed

Sans titre, 1886

James Ensor

Sans titre, 1886

Sale Date: November 22, 2012

Auction Closed

Sans titre, 1886

James Ensor

Sans titre, 1886

Sale Date: November 22, 2012

Auction Closed

Ernest Rousseau, 1887

James Ensor

Ernest Rousseau, 1887

Sale Date: November 22, 2012

Auction Closed

Mon portrait squelettise, 1889

James Ensor

Mon portrait squelettise, 1889

Sale Date: November 22, 2012

Auction Closed

La Multiplication des poissons, 1891

James Ensor

La Multiplication des poissons, 1891

Sale Date: November 30, 2012

Auction Closed

La cathédrale, 1886

James Ensor

La cathédrale, 1886

Sale Date: November 30, 2012

Auction Closed

Maisonnettes a Mariakerke, 1888

James Ensor

Maisonnettes a Mariakerke, 1888

Sale Date: December 1, 2012

Auction Closed