11 Works, Today, January 9th is Albert Baertsoen's day, his story illustrated #009

Albert Baertsoen

Canal houses, Holland, circa1898-1899

Oil on canvas

Private collection

Albert Baertsoen (9 January 1866 – 9 June 1922) was a Belgian painter, pastellist and graphic artist; born in Ghent.

Albert Baertsoen [1866 - 1922)

A Ghent alley in the evening/ Soir à l'asile à Gand

Oil on Canvas

88,5 x 120 cm

Private collection

Belgium was  the most industrialized nations in 19th century Europe, and Ghent was a city known for its textile mills.  

Albert Baertsoen [1866 - 1922)

Ghent with its textile mills

I have no further description, at this time

Baertsoen's father was a successful  miller, so the family's prosperity made art and music lessons for a talented child possible. Albert became an accomplished musician before he turned to painting.

Albert Baertsoen [1866 - 1922)

Schilders van de Leie/ Boats on the river Leie in Gent

Oil on canvas

I have no further description, at this time

Albert Baertsoen [1866 - 1922)

Thaw in Ghent, Verloren brood bridge, circa 1902

Oil on canvas

Height: 118.5 cm (46.6 in); Width: 167 cm (65.7 in)

Musée d'Orsay

As a child Albert walked the streets of Ghent with the artist  Gustave Den Duyts. The River Lys, seen in Thaw In Ghent was his daily companion. In 1882, he began attending the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, where he studied under Gustave Den Duyts and Jean Delvin. His debut as a painter came in 1887, when he participated in an exhibition in Brussels held by the secessionist group l'Essor.

Albert Baertsoen [1866 - 1922)

ZICHT OP LONDON BRIDGE/ VIEW OF LONDON BRIDGE, circa 1917-1919

Oil on canvas

71 x 56 cm

Private collection

He continued his studies in Paris, at the art school of Alfred Philippe Roll, and exhibited at the Salon in 1889. The following year, he accompanied James Ensor, Frantz Charlet and other Belgian painters on a study trip to London. 

Albert Baertsoen [1866 - 1922)

View of the port

Oil on canvas

40 x 60 cm

Private collection

In 1894, he helped found the "Cercle des Beaux-Arts d'Ostende". The years 1894/95 saw another stay in Paris, where his painting "Oude Vlaamse Vaart" (Old Flemish Sails) was acquired by the Musée du Luxembourg and he participated in an exhibition held by La Libre Esthétique. From 1896 to 1901, he continued to exhibit throughout Europe, winning several Gold Medals.

Albert Baertsoen

Barges under the snow, c. 1901 

Oil and pastel on canvas

140 x 192

 Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium

Albert Baertsoen (1866-1922)

Ghent Eening/ Evening in Gent, c.1903

Oil on canvas

I have no further description, at this time

Twilight at he center of Ghent. At left is  the Maison de Bateliers, the boatmen's hiring hall.  In the background are the Churches of Saint-Michael and an old hotel left over from the First Empire. The red boat, possibly similar to one where the artist had sat himself down to work.

In 1898, Baertsoen embarked on a trip down the Ghent-Ternuezen Canal from his hometown to the Dutch port city of Ternuezen.  The houseboat was both home and floating studio where Baertsoen painted tranquil scenes of the small Flemish towns along the canal, that gradually were  replaced by gritty views of working barges in the industrial north. The Little Watercourse In Flanders At Twilight is a well-known souvenir of the Baertsoen's houseboat days.

Albert Baertsoen

Small courtyard in Flanders at dusk, c.1899

Oil on canvas

H. 141.0; L. 108.5 cm.

Orsay museum, Paris, France

The Germans invaded Belgium in the early months of World War I. Flanders became the ground on which some of the war's most horrific fighting took place. Baertsoen moved to London to be with his son. The artist was also reunited with his friend Emile Claus as the two worked in the studio of American painter John Singer Sargent.  Widespread destruction notwithstanding, Baertsoen returned home to Ghent when the war ended.

Albert Baertsoen

A view of the Lindenlei, Ghent from the window of the artist's studio

Oil on canvas

43 x 30 cm

Private collection

Baertsoen returned to Ghent in 1919. That same year, he was appointed a member of the Royal Academy of Belgium. Two years later, a retrospective of his work was held at the Galerie Georges Giroux in Brussels. He died in Ghent in 1922. More on Albert Baertsoen

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