In Ensor’s work, we can see the shift from classical to modern style happening right before our eyes

The KMSKA houses one of the largest collections of James Ensor in the world. For curator Herwig Todts and doctoral researcher Annelies Ríos-Casier, his oeuvre provides the perfect starting point for understanding the impact of modernism on the studio practices of Western European painters.

This article was previously published in the FWO Yearbook. Photos: Karel Duerinckx.

The nineteenth century was the age of science: chemistry and physics developed rapidly, and one technological advancement followed another. This also triggered a revolution in culture, shifting toward a more experimental, modern way of working. Today, this has significant implications for the conservation and restoration of “modern” painting. Annelies Ríos-Casier and Herwig Todts examine how this is reflected in the work of James Ensor.

Modernism encompasses a wide range of styles and artists. What makes art “modern” for you?

Herwig Todts: “Every image exists by virtue of light, color, and form. From the fourteenth century well into the nineteenth, Western European art mainly sought to use these elements realistically. At the end of the nineteenth century, a shift occurred: artists began to use all three visual elements completely freely. They detached their art from reality, resulting in purely abstract works as well as more or less figurative ones.” 

Annelies Ríos-Casier: “The development of modern sciences went hand in hand with major innovations in art. Previously, paint was usually made by the artist and painting was mostly done in the studio. The invention of the paint tube made it possible to paint outdoors. The new pigments were much cheaper but also more vibrant. With these additions to the traditional color palette, even more opportunities for experimentation and innovation arose.”

James Ensor’s oeuvre is at the heart of your research. Why did you choose this particular painter?

Herwig Todts: “Ensor’s career spans about 65 years, during which he created roughly 850 paintings. In his early period, he worked in a fairly classical manner, with a realistic style and rather dark colors. Later, masks and grotesques appeared, as in The Intrigue, one of his best-known works. We also now know that Ensor regularly painted over his own works. Adam and Eve Expelled from Paradise, another masterpiece, was painted in 1887, a year after he became familiar with the French Impressionists. You can see that encounter reflected in the painting: Monet suddenly appears in Ensor’s work. So we witness the shift from classical to modern style right before our eyes.”

Annelies Ríos-Casier: “This is also visible in the techniques Ensor used. In his realistic period, he followed a fairly academic layering of paint, with a transparent colored underlayer before beginning the actual painting. He worked with both palette knife and brush, which resulted in very thick layers. Gradually, his technique changed, and the white ground became increasingly visible, taking on an important role in the painting. Ensor used new pigments, brighter colors… At the time of The Intrigue, he was still painting with both palette knife and brush, following the underpainting quite carefully. In a later period, for example when he created The Temptation of Saint Anthony the Great, Ensor applied thin, transparent layers, worked exclusively with a brush, and began to incorporate colored pencil as well.”

Your research combines an art-historical perspective with a heritage-science approach. What is the added value of this combination?

Annelies Ríos-Casier: “The materials and techniques used determine the conservation and restoration of paintings: the thickness of the paint, whether the layers adhere properly, whether the paint contains enough, too little, or too much binder… On several works, for example, we find a gray top layer. We don’t know whether Ensor applied it or not, or whether it has always been gray. How we treat that layer largely depends on whether it is original or not.” 

Herwig Todts: “Many questions still exist in the art world regarding Ensor’s periodization and his works. The authenticity of some pieces is not yet certain, and for others, authorship is unknown. We do have Ensor’s writings and letters, but he rarely discusses specific studio practices. For instance, his letters tell us that Ensor ‘sometimes used varnish, sometimes not.’ He was interested in innovation, but modernism—for example, Expressionism—did not particularly engage him. He was clearly open to clarity and intensity of color, but very rarely mentioned the names of pigments. As a source of information, his writings therefore remain rather superficial.”

Annelies Ríos-Casier: “This is exactly where the added value of my background as a conservator-restorer comes in. After a visual examination to identify interesting areas, I work with non-destructive techniques. Different types of light reveal more about varnish use, previous restorations, or can even make an underdrawing visible. X-rays allow me to see through the painting, showing how the canvas is attached to the stretcher or whether there is a hidden painting underneath. The next step is Macroscopic X-Ray Fluorescence (MA-XRF) scanning, which provides insight into pigment use and helps reconstruct overpaintings. If that still doesn’t answer the research question, we can take a tiny sample of paint, usually smaller than a millimeter, to the lab. This allows us to analyze the binders, degradation, and layer structure of the paint.”

Your collaboration is supported by the FWO. What exactly does that mean?

Herwig Todts: “The KMSKA has one of the largest Ensor collections in the world. That’s why we launched the Ensor research project in 2013. When the materials-technical expert left in 2015, the project also came to a halt. I’m an art historian myself, so I absolutely needed someone with that expertise. And suddenly, there was a restoration and conservation student who wanted to join our project. That’s a stroke of luck one can only hope for.”

Annelies Ríos-Casier: “I wrote my master’s thesis on The Oyster Eater and had already completed an internship at the KMSKA. Thanks to the FWO, I was given the opportunity, via a doctoral mandate, to carry out four years of fundamental research into the materials and techniques used in Ensor’s work. This allows me to make a significant contribution to the stylistic, iconographic, and art-historical research that Herwig oversees. This part of my research should be completed by the end of 2026.”

What plans do you have for the coming months?

Annelies Ríos-Casier: “Over the past few years, I’ve been able to gather a lot of data, and I’m now preparing several publications based on it. I hope to find decisive information soon regarding the ‘gray layer.’ In the longer term, I would love to do an internship at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles. One of Ensor’s largest works, The Entry of Christ into Brussels (1889), is on display there. It seems like a wonderful way to conclude this research, working in such a prestigious institution.”

Herwig Todts: “2024 is the year of Ensor. At the end of the year, we are therefore organizing a major Ensor exhibition. In addition, we are working on an online catalogue of Ensor’s work for a research audience. I also think it’s important that sooner or later we expand our Ensor project to include research beyond just Ensor. He was not alone in Brussels or Ostend. At that time, many artists were more or less avant-garde. Think of Théo van Rysselberghe, Fernand Khnopff, or Henry van de Velde. I would like to make those comparisons to see: how truly innovative was Ensor’s work?”