EINDHOVEN continued.
The
Van Abbe Museum (since 1936) has a variety of Art from Modern and Contemporary Dutch as well as other European artists:
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| Woman with a hat by Henri Matisse, 1905 |
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| Reading Woman by Jan Sluijters, 1911 |
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| My Girlfriend by Otto Dix, 1919 |
And Eindhoven features outstanding public art too:
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| Flying Pins by Claes Oldenburg & Coosje van Bruggen, 2000 |
Next I crossed the border into Germany and visited DUSSELDORF and the Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen. They were having a special show for Otto Dix, who lived in Dusseldorf from 1922-1925. Photos were not allowed.
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| Portrait of the dancer Anita Berber by Otto Dix, 1925 |
But the regular collection had much to offer:
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| Women and a Pierrot by Emil Nolde, 1917 |
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| In the Blue by Wassily Kandinsky, 1925 |
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| Adam and Eve by Fernand Leger, 1935-39 |
Of course, there were sculptures:
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| by Bernar Venet |
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| Der grune Zuschauer by Meret Oppenheim, 1933 |
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| Rotation IV by George Rickey, 1980 |
We have visited DUISBURG before, but the museum was closed then so had to return. The Stiftung Wilhelm Lehmbruck Museum - Center for International Sculpture is located in a park near the center of town. One building was dedicated to Lehmbruck's sculpture.
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| Large Pensive Woman by Wilhelm Lehmbruck, 1913 |
Interspersed with paintings.
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| Zwei Frauen am Meer by Erich Heckel, 1913 |
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| Zwei Schwestern by August Macke, 1911 |
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| Badende by Wilhelm Lehmbruck, 1914 |
And outdoor sculpture as well:
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| Reflective Figure, Part II by Henry Moore, 1959 |
Museum Folkwang was established in
ESSEN with the merger of two museums in 1922.
Folkwang refers to the afterlife's "Meadow of the Dead" presided over by the Norse goddess
Freyja. Excellent collections.
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| Drei Badende im Teich by Otto Mueller, c 1912 |
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| Mother with Child on Arm, Halfway II by Paula Modersohn-Becker, 1907 |
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| Afternoon by Max Beckmann, 1946 |
There was no show at La Boverie in LIEGE, BELGIUM, and the promised Dali in the train station was just temporary, so I shot a few pictures and drove west across Belgium to Gent.
CHAUDFONTAINE is, as the name implies, a hot spring resort southeast of Liege.
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| La Source by Werner Morton, 2014 |
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| Giant Clothespin by Mehmet Ali Uysal |
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| Expeces Rare by Elodi Antoine, 2017 |
Actually I stayed in the village of HERTSBERGE, which is closer to Bruges than Gent, but central enough to include Ostende in my range. Here is something I found along the way:
I began at the James Ensor House in the coastal city of OSTENDE, which featured a show called Two Masters of Ostende. James Ensor and Leon Spillaert were important artists in the city's history. Ensor lived in Ostende his entire life and is considered an influence on future Expressionist and Surrealist artists.
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| Rooftops of Ostend by James Ensor, 1900-1901 |
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| The Blue Tub by Leon Spilliaert, 1907 |
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| Girls with White Stockings by Leon Spilliaert, 1912 |
Also in Ostende is the Mu.ZEE, which specializes in Belgian artists. Here are a few:
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| The Conquest of Troy by Edgard Tytgat, 1950 |
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| Vissersweduwe met kind by Jean Vervisch |
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| Le taxi by Frans Masereel, 1922 |
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| The Staircase by Paul Delvaux, 1946 |
Ostende sculpture:
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| Pallas by Luk van Soom, 1986 |
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| Ikaros II by Stefaan Depuydt |
In
GENT I began with a visit to the
MSK GENT: Museum voor Schone Kunsten specializing in Modern Art.
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| Four Naked Girls on a Boat by Edgard Tytgat, 1950 |
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| Pierrot and Skeleton in a Yellow Robe by James Ensor, 1893 |
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| Young Girl on a Red Carpet by Felice Casorati, 1912 |
Just outside Gent is the village of
SINT-MARTENS-LATEM which was home to many Symbolist artists before WWII. Now it is a wealthy residential community. Where there were once museums for both Gustave and Leon de Smet, all that remains is their names on street signs. I have separated the work of these artists from the others that I found at MSK:
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| The Good House by Gustave de Smet, 1926 |
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| Interior or A Loving Couple by Leon de Smet, 1911 |
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| The Gardener by Jenny Montigny, nd |
I see that I have been posting a lot of Art lately, so here are some other pictures of BRUSSELS.
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| Cat on Bike by Alain Sechas, 2005 |
Of course there was Art on the streets:
I began at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium where at least most of the Modern Art collection was open to be seen. After learning about Belgian painters in museums prior to Brussels, I was delighted to see so many examples here.
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| Skeletons Fighting over a Smoked Herring by James Ensor, 1891 |
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| The Peasant by Vincent Van Gogh |
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| Eve or The Apple by Gustave de Smet, 1913 |
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| The Dance by Xavier Mellery, 1888 |
CLICK HERE FOR MORE.
Here's a little sculpture:
And here is the view of the Marolles Flea Market from my apartment window in Brussels:
Following a fast train ride, I was in PARIS.
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| Angel Bear by Richard Texier, 2015 |
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| Grand Prix Racing |
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| La Closerie des Lilas, Montparnasse, 1900 |
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| Ecoute by Henri de Miller, 1986 |
May 21st was the Night of Museums which is celebrated throughout Europe with late hours and free admission. My big target was the U.N.E.S.C.O. building which is a little southwest of the Champ de Mars. The collection was begun in 1958 with the inauguration of the organization's headquarters and now has more than 500 works of Art. Here are some that were on display:
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| Spirale by Alexander Calder, 1958 |
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| Walls of the Sun and the Moon by Joan Miro, 1958 |
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| Rencontre du Printemps by Karel Appel, 1958 |
CLICK HERE TO SEE A FEW MORE.
I was able to catch the Grand Steeplechase of Paris at the Hippodrome Auteuil, in the Bois de Boulogne.
While I was unsuccessful in my search for the grave of Henri Rousseau in the Cimetiere Bagneux (south of the city), I did find Suzanne Valadon in Saint Ouen, north of the city, just beyond the flea markets.
More shots of Paris:
Another train ride, but this time a much longer one to the south of France. At Perpignan station I took a local train for 50 km (for 1 euro) to Villefranche de Conflent where I caught the Ligne de Cerdagne (aka the Little Yellow Train) for a ride into the Pyrenees. The narrow gauge, electric line has been climbing those mountains since 1909.
After my return to Perpignan, there was one more train ride toward the Spanish border and COLLIOURE.
Known as the birthplace of Fauvism, after Henri Matisse came here with a few of his friends in 1905 to explore using vivid color in expressing their Art, Collioure remains picturesque. For the unenlightened, Fauve means "wild beast" and is the name given to this group of artists (including Andre Derain, Maurice de Vlamink, Raoul Dufy, Kees von Dongen, and Albert Marquet). It was taken from an art critic's quote when referring to a Renaissance sculpture that was being displayed in same room with the colorful paintings and said "like Donatello among the wild beasts."
Once the hangout of Matisse and his cronies, Les Templiers now boasts a collection over 2,500 paintings that cover the walls of the cafe, bar, and hotel. Many paid for bar tabs of the artists.
And the band serenaded.
Le Petit Cafe is an authentic Art Nouveau nightclub from 19?? Very unusual for the town.
Took a bus ride down the coast to BANYULS-SUR-MER, which is the home of Aristide Maillol. Maillol's sculptures can be found all over Europe, but especially in the southwest corner of France. His house was closed and displays work of contemporary artists, but I stopped and snapped a couple of shots.
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| Ile de France by Aristide Maillol, 1925 |
Next stop ARLES. End of Part 2
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