Emile Claus
"Zicht op Astene, 1889"
EMILE CLAUS
Sint-Eloois-Vijve, Waregem 1849-1924 Astene, Deinze
VIEW OF ASTENE, 1889
Oil on canvas
48 x 65 cm.
Signed and dated: lower left ‘E. Claus sept 1889’, and with inscription on the stretcher ‘gemaakt in Astene den avond dat costumeke fabriek Corvillain ontploft is.’
Exhibited: Ghent, Museum voor Schone Kunsten, Retrospectieve Emile Claus, 1974.
Characteristic of Claus is the fine, shaded brushstroke. Claus became the master of luminism. He painted many river scenes (de Leie) and portraits. In 1904 he founded the artists' association Vie et Lumiere. The war brought him to London where he made gray, spherical paintings of the Thames. His influence on the next generation of artists, the Flemish expressionists, was great.