For anyone who hasn’t had the chance to see the work of Flemish artist James Ensor’s , particularly known for his bizarre masks, his exhibition is on at the Royal Academy until 29 January, 2017.
Despite spending his professional life in the Belgium seaside town of Ostend, James Ensor exerted considerable influence on the development of Expressionism. According to the curator and artist Luc Tuymans, Ensor was a scenographer, depicting a strange world that was neither tangible nor imaginary, populated by inscrutable beings. When Ensor was asked “What do you paint”? His reply was “Nothing”.
Ensor’s childhood was spent among the treasures of his family’s curiosity shop which gives a clue as to how the seeds of his wild imagination were sown. Ensor enrolled at the Academie Royals des Beaux-Art de Belgique in Brussels and through the people he met he entered a circle of progressive, free-thinking liberals who influenced his evolution as an artist. Born of an English father and Flemish mother, in 1929 he received the title of Baron from King Albert 1.
Tickets £11.50 (£10 without a donation.) Under 16s go free.
Open Saturday – Thursday 10am – 6pm Friday to 10pm
Royal Academy, Piccadilly, London W1J OBD.
T. 020 7300 8090 www.royalacademy.org.uk
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