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ART IN BELGIUM AND HOLLAND. laxvil
atity by his equestrian statue of Godfrey de Bouillon (p. 99), the
profile view of which is undeniably effective; as Director of the
Academy from 1863 he exercised an excellent influence. Auguste
Fraikin (4817-93) is noted for his graceful figures of women and
children (Venus and Cupid; Cradle of Bacchus), but his master-
iece is his admirable group of Counts Egmont and Hoorn (p. 108).
this ks are to be seen in the Fraikin Museum at Heren-
, his native town (p. 211). The ‘Prometheus Bound’ of Paul
Bouré (4 23-48), who died young, and the ‘Chastised Slave’ of
Victor van Hove (1821-91) are noteworthy as heralds of the ensuing
period.
Belgian sculpture did not reach its zenith proper until after 1870.
The first place here is claimed for the name of Charles van der
Stappen (b. 1843), not a specially profound master, but a highly
gifted, fertile, and t ul sculptor, and one of the most suggestive
of artists. Working sometimes in the spirit of classic art, sometimes
in the baroque spirit, or again under an absolutely modern inspiration,
and handling metal, marble, and ivory with equal mastery, Van der
Stappen has produced ideal statues, great decorative compositions
(‘Instruction in Art’, p. 106), sepulchral monuments, busts, and
many other works, and has found time also to design gold and silver
plate for the city of Brussels. Among the chief works of Paul de
Vigne (1843-1901), who formed himself in Florence by a study of
the art of the Quattrocentists, are the ‘Triumph of Art’ (p. 106) and
the Monument to Breidel and De Coninc (p. 36). The sculptures
on the Anspach Fountain (p. 134) are partly by him and partly by
Julien Ditlens (1849-1904), another highly fanciful and decorative
spirit, whose most popular work is the ‘Quiet of the Tomb’, in the
cemetery of St. Gilles (p. 143). An entirely independent line
followed by Jef Lambeaux (1852-1908), who seemed to aim
at reviving in sculpture the exuberant and sensuous strength of
Rubens. Though many of his productions border on the tasteless, no
one will refuse admiration to ‘The Kiss’ (p. 187), ‘The Wrestlers’,
‘The Bitten Faun’ (p. 252), and other groups teeming with nervous
life. Léon Mignon (1847-98), distinguished as an animal-sculptor,
was a native of Liége, where his ‘Bull-tamer’ (p. 249) is preserved.
Much older than all these was Constantin Meunier (p. lxxiv), who
did not resume the chisel until after 1880, but achieved a Huropean
celebrity in 1896, and rose to the supreme pinnacle of fame. The
foundrymen of the Borinage, the glass-workers of Seraing, and the
dock-labourers of Antwerp furnished him with the models for his
rough and angular figures, which in their grand simplicity strike
a veritably classic note. Among his finest works are the pathetic
group known as ‘Le Grisou’ (Fire-damp, p. 107), the ‘Puddler’
(p. 107), the ‘Horse drinking’ in the Square Ambiorix (p. 136),
the ‘Monument to Labour’ (p. 108), all in Brussels, and the
‘Stevedore’ in Antwerp (p. 186). |
