Ensor, James (1860-1949), was a Belgian painter and printmaker. He created his most important pictures between 1880 and 1900. Masks were a favorite subject. His figures often wear brightly colored but devilish masks that serve to both threaten the viewer and hide the wearer’s identity. Skeletons and demons also appear in many of Ensor’s paintings and etchings. In his most famous painting, The Entry of Christ into Brussels (1888), Ensor combined three of his most common themes—the mask, the crowd, and Jesus Christ.
Ensor’s fantastic subjects have been compared to the paintings of two earlier Belgian artists, Pieter Bruegel the Elder and Hieronymus Bosch. His paintings also anticipate two art movements of the early 1900’s—Expressionism and Surrealism.
Ensor was born on Oct. 13, 1860, in Ostend, a resort town on the North Sea. His paintings reflect the carnival masks, toys, and sea shells that his parents sold from their souvenir shop to the crowds of tourists. He died on Nov. 19, 1949.
