Albert Claeys (°1889 - †1967) - Winter in Vlaanderen

THE PAINTING

This artwork by Albert Jozef Claeys (1889 – 1967) shows a desolate Flemish winter landscape. It somewhat recalls the mood of Hieronymus Bosch's painting 'The Wanderer' from around 1500. The size of both works is also similar (80 x 80 cm). Perhaps it was a small excursion for the artist, a step away from the Impressionists.

Beyond the lonely bare trees, the birdhouse on the central tree in the painting catches the eye. It may hint at spring, life, albeit only tenuously. A striking feature is the green zone in the landscape between the gray sky and the dark-brown foreground.

The canvas is sold without a frame. It is signed by the artist in the lower right corner. On the reverse side one can see an old but professional restoration. There is also an old auction label from Campo, which was then located on the Meir in Antwerp (1897 – 1992).

THE ARTIST
Claeys Albert Jozef (1889 – 1967)

Albert Jozef Claeys was a Belgian painter born in 1889 in Eke and died in 1967 in Deinze. He studied at Sint-Lucas and the Academy in Ghent under the supervision of J. Delvin, Metdepenninck and G. Minne.

He belonged to the third group of the Latem School. Those considered part of that group include: Hubert Malfait, Albert Saverys, Jozef De Coene, Arthur Deleu, Jules Boulez, Victor Lorein, Achiel Van Sassenbroeck, Louis Pevernagie and Maurice Schelck.

After his studies at Sint-Lucas in Ghent, Claeys furthered his training at the Ghent Academy of Fine Arts. He specialized in decorative and monumental arts under the guidance of sculptor Felix Metdepenningen. Thanks to his mentor, Claeys received a grant to study in France. At the Ghent Academy he also studied with George Minne. Among his fellow students were Evarist De Buck and Albert Saverys.

It was only in 1920 that Claeys first emerged with his work, during a solo exhibition at the Ghent Salle Taets. The exhibition was so successful that the gallery owner staged another show of his work the following year. In that period Claeys was also active within the Gentse Cercle Artistique et Littéraire. Later, exhibitions followed in Brussels as well.

Gradually Claeys grew into a prominent representative of Belgian modern art. A telling example was his participation, in November 1924, in the renowned exhibition La Jeune Peinture Belge in Paris.

Like Valerius De Saedeleer, Claeys settled in the Flemish Ardennes during the interwar period. It was not until 1932 that he moved to Sint-Martens-Latem. The village increasingly became a favored summer residence for the Gentleman of Ghent, who owned country houses or visited for weekend strolls. However, Claeys did not let the growing tourist success of Latem dictate him. In his paintings he created his own, idealized portrayal of the village, detached from daily reality.

Towards the end of the 1930s Claeys was a welcome figure in the Gent gallery Vyncke-van Eyck. His path into museum collections followed gradually as well: his works were incorporated into the collections of museums in Antwerp, Ghent, Liège and Leuven.

Near his home Claeys had a dock installed, so that from his small boat he could paint on the water. Thus he captured the landscape along the Leie in idyllic, almost dreamlike images, in which nature exudes a hushed and poetic atmosphere.