Théo van Rysselberghe

The key figure of Belgian Neo-Impressionism, Théo Van Rysselberghe (1862-1926) has a considerable reputation outside his own country. Van Rysselberghe had ties with the outstanding Belgian and French painters of his day and painted a number of portraits of friends such as Emile Verhaeren, Edmond Picard, Camille Lemonnier, André Gide, Paul Signac, and Henri-Edmond Cross. Through his art, the painter entered into a dialogue with his contemporaries, including Seurat, Signac, Cross, Van de Velde, Morren, Lemmen, and Finch. A number of styles can be observed: Orientalism (his first travels in Morocco), Impressionism (seascapes painted near Knokke, scenes from Moroccan life), Neo-Impressionism, portraits, and his late works (seascapes, landscapes, and female nudes).