DOI issue:
No. 66 (September, 1898)
DOI article:Mourey, Gabriel: A painter of dead cities: M. Albert Baertsoen
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.21969#0262
Albert Baertsoen
now how he has expressed these things. Others,
tempted by his success, have followed him on the
self-same scenes ; but in their work only the mere
outline is there : the spirit, the soul of the place,
which shine forth and quiver in Baertsoen’s can-
vases—all this has evaporated.
That which we term “sentiment in art” is a
quality that has for years back been quite
neglected until lately. Its revival sprang from the
excesses of impressionism, and we may be glad
indeed that it was so. Is there a single great
master who has dispensed with this “ sentiment,” or
escaped its influence ? However much the most
extraordinary feats of technique may surprise and
interest us, it is the moving manifestation of a true
artistic sensibility which charms our eyes and takes
our fancy captive. What could be lovelier than
the emotion of the artist in the presence of Nature ?
and what greater delight than to share it ?
The scenes displayed before us by M. Baertsoen,
the landscapes of which he has made himself the
interpreter, are, indeed, altogether captivating. He
has the delicate art of catching Nature in her
most attractive moods. It is delightful to wander
with him through these “ dead cities ” of Flanders,
where life flows as slowly and peacefully as the
waters of the canals that traverse them; to linger
in the shadow of the ancient belfries, whose chimes
ring out the melancholy song of the ages. The
grass sprouts between the pavement, and moss
clings to the mouldering walls; along the deserted
quays the heavy boats are moored; everything
seems dead this snowy weather; a funereal stillness
hangs over the town; but in the snug houses, behind
the little windows with white curtains raised to let
in the scanty light, a humble, simple existence
is running its dull course, amid a peacefulness
almost monastic. Women are sewing or making
“ LE VIEUX PORT, VEERE
228
FROM AN ETCHING BY ALBERT BAERTSOEN
now how he has expressed these things. Others,
tempted by his success, have followed him on the
self-same scenes ; but in their work only the mere
outline is there : the spirit, the soul of the place,
which shine forth and quiver in Baertsoen’s can-
vases—all this has evaporated.
That which we term “sentiment in art” is a
quality that has for years back been quite
neglected until lately. Its revival sprang from the
excesses of impressionism, and we may be glad
indeed that it was so. Is there a single great
master who has dispensed with this “ sentiment,” or
escaped its influence ? However much the most
extraordinary feats of technique may surprise and
interest us, it is the moving manifestation of a true
artistic sensibility which charms our eyes and takes
our fancy captive. What could be lovelier than
the emotion of the artist in the presence of Nature ?
and what greater delight than to share it ?
The scenes displayed before us by M. Baertsoen,
the landscapes of which he has made himself the
interpreter, are, indeed, altogether captivating. He
has the delicate art of catching Nature in her
most attractive moods. It is delightful to wander
with him through these “ dead cities ” of Flanders,
where life flows as slowly and peacefully as the
waters of the canals that traverse them; to linger
in the shadow of the ancient belfries, whose chimes
ring out the melancholy song of the ages. The
grass sprouts between the pavement, and moss
clings to the mouldering walls; along the deserted
quays the heavy boats are moored; everything
seems dead this snowy weather; a funereal stillness
hangs over the town; but in the snug houses, behind
the little windows with white curtains raised to let
in the scanty light, a humble, simple existence
is running its dull course, amid a peacefulness
almost monastic. Women are sewing or making
“ LE VIEUX PORT, VEERE
228
FROM AN ETCHING BY ALBERT BAERTSOEN