European Art, 1600 to the Present: Biographies

The Oxford Dictionary of Art The Concise Oxford... The Columbia Encyclopedia,... Further reading

Wiertz, Antoine

The Oxford Dictionary of Art | 2004 | | Copyright

Wiertz, Antoine (b Dinant, 22 Feb. 1806; d Brussels, 18 June 1865). Belgian painter, one of the great eccentrics in the history of art. In 1832 he won the Belgian Prix de Rome and when he visited Italy in 1834 he was overwhelmed by Michelangelo. His other great artistic hero was Rubens and he tried to follow in their footsteps with enormous and high-flown religious, historical, and allegorical canvases. The results now seem almost dementedly bombastic and melodramatic, but he had many admirers among his countrymen. The Belgian government was keen to promote a national school of painting and in 1850–1 built him a special studio in Brussels (now the Musée Wiertz). He worked there in isolation for the rest of his life, seeing himself as an artist-philosopher and totally convinced of his own genius. Some of his work is erotic or macabre in character and anticipates Belgian Symbolism (Thoughts and Visions of a Severed Head, 1853, Mus. Wiertz).

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

IAN CHILVERS. "Wiertz, Antoine." The Oxford Dictionary of Art. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 9 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

IAN CHILVERS. "Wiertz, Antoine." The Oxford Dictionary of Art. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (February 9, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O2-WiertzAntoine.html

IAN CHILVERS. "Wiertz, Antoine." The Oxford Dictionary of Art. 2004. Retrieved February 09, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O2-WiertzAntoine.html

Learn more about citation styles

Wiertz, Antoine

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists | 2003 | | Copyright

Wiertz, Antoine (1806–65). Belgian painter, one of the great eccentrics in the history of art. In 1832 he won the Belgian Prix de Rome and when he visited Italy in 1834 he was overwhelmed by Michelangelo. His other great artistic hero was Rubens and he tried to follow in their footsteps with enormous and high-flown religious, historical, and allegorical canvases. The results now seem almost dementedly bombastic and melodramatic, but he had many admirers among his countrymen. The Belgian government was keen to promote a national school of painting and in 1850–1 built him a special studio in Brussels (now the Musée Wiertz). He worked there in isolation for the rest of his life, seeing himself as an artist-philosopher and totally convinced of his own genius. Some of his work is erotic or macabre in character and anticipates Belgian Symbolism.

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

IAN CHILVERS. "Wiertz, Antoine." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 9 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

IAN CHILVERS. "Wiertz, Antoine." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (February 9, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O3-WiertzAntoine.html

IAN CHILVERS. "Wiertz, Antoine." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists. 2003. Retrieved February 09, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O3-WiertzAntoine.html

Learn more about citation styles