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In Afwachting . Schilderij 1844 Antoine Wiertz. L'attente
Catalogue information
LastDodo number
4586981
Area
Postcards
Title
In Afwachting . Schilderij 1844 Antoine Wiertz. L'attente
City
Street
Province / region
Country
Theme
Year
1915
Collection / set
Number on postcard
32
Designer
Publisher as on card
General name of the publisher
Dimensions
9.1 x 14.0 cm
Printing technique
Details
Antoine Wiertz (1806-1865) is a little known, but fascinating example of a Romantic artist. He won the Prix de Rome, a paid fellowship which allowed him to paint in Rome, in 1832. On his return he was warmly welcomed in Belgium, but met with little success in the Paris Salon, to which he submitted several works. In 1850 the Belgian government offered to build a studio for him in exchange for a number of works or art. The studio is now a museum, and is located in the Parc Leopold, not far from the Cinquantenaire Park. Despite this official success, he never received the full measure of recognition that he felt his genius deserved. His paintings are often huge, matching his ambition and ego; in size, at least, he tried to rival Rubens. One patriotic canvas celebrating The Apotheosis of the Queen (1856) was projected to be 150 feet high, though it was never completed.
Another aspect of his Romanticism was his strikingly imaginative subjects. He was drawn to morbid themes, such as the image of mortality embodied in The Two Beauties: La Belle Rosine (1847). Other astonishing works include The Suicide (1854), and The Last Thoughts and Visions of a Decapitated Head (1853) -- a triptych, no less.