Book
James Ensor, 1860-1949 : masks, death, and the sea / Ulrike Becks-Malorny ; English translation, John Gabriel.
It was never a sure thing that James Ensor, the great Belgian painter of macabre and ghoulish scenes, would become a nationally revered figure. He was unusual in many ways. Apart from his training in Brussels, he spent his entire long life in Ostend, seemingly the opposite of cosmopolitan. Later on he was expelled by the group Les XX for a particularly controversial canvas: The Entry of Christ into Brussels, which he had painted in 1889. An expressionist before the term was coined, Ensor used the iconography of masks and skeletons to point up the essential horrors of life, and often underwrote his images with a sardonic gallows humour. It has been said that he appropriated the subject matter of a Bosch or Bruegel and revisioned them using the techniques of Manet or Rubens. But this is to diminish his own unique take on both art and experience. A genuine maverick in the way that so many Belgian artists were, James Ensor can claim a dark and distinctive place in the art histories of the last hundred years.
Record details
- ISBN: 9783836560566
- ISBN: 3836560569
- Physical Description: 95 pages : illustrations (chiefly color) ; 27 cm.
- Edition: English edition.
- Publisher: Köln : Taschen, [2016]
- Copyright: ©2016
Content descriptions
| Formatted Contents Note: | Outsider and loner -- Between realism and imagination -- Parade of the masses -- Behind the mask -- Hareng Saur -- satire and caricature -- Baron Ensor -- late fame -- James Ensor 1860-1949 life and work. |
| Language Note: | In English translated from the German. |
Search for related items by subject
| Subject: | Ensor, James, 1860-1949 > Criticism and interpretation. Ensor, James, > Criticism and interpretation. Ensor, James, 1860-1949. |
| Genre: | Criticism, interpretation, etc. Criticism, interpretation, etc. |
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Show Only Available Copies
| Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Homer Public Library | 759.9493 BEC (Text) | 000155691 | Nonfiction | Available | - |
Summary
Ensor
An Expressionist before the term was coined, James Ensor (1860-1949) was the classic insider-outsider enigma. He knew all the right art-world figures but loathed most of them. His style lurched from the Gothic fantastical to the Christian visionary. He was a cosmopolitan trailblazer of modernism, but lived reclusively in an attic room in the resort town of Ostend. For all his elusiveness, Ensor influenced generations of artists through his vivid often gruesome paintings, prints, and drawings. He is cited in particular for his use of dark satire and allegory , his innovative lighting , and for his interest in carnival and performance , showcased in The Entry of Christ into Brussels in 1889 as well as in his repertoire of self-portraits in which he employs masking, travesty, and role-playing to adopt such varied guises as Christ on the Cross and a gender-bending dandy. This introduction to Ensor explores the richness and variety of his imagery through key examples of his macabre, maverick oeuvre.
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