Paint layer
Technique
Ensor painted the work in oil paint, combining impastos with paintstrokes of dilute paint, and allowing the ground layer to show through here and there. At first glance, this paint layer appears to have a straightforward paint layer build-up; it is mostly built up out of one, or at most two, superimposed paintstrokes. Nonetheless, underlying colours are visible in several places and the underlying texture of these paint strokes can occasionally be seen too.
Ensor has reused canvas with partially or fully executed compositions multiple times, but whether this is an instance of such reuse is unclear. It rather seems to resemble an initial setup that is integrated into the final result in some places and covered in others at a later stage of the painting process. There is a blue colour beneath the entire left-hand area which was dry by the time the artist painted over it. Ensor must have chosen intentionally to allow this blue to show through the later paint layers. A similar approach can be observed elsewhere in Ensor’s oeuvre, including in Grey Seascape (1880, inv. 1851, KMSKA), Still Life with Oysters (1882, inv. 1412, KMSKA), Rooftops of Ostend (1884, inv. 2706, KMSKA), The Oyster Eater (1882, inv. 2073, KMSKA), Skeletons Fighting over the Body of a Hanged Man (1891, inv. 1857, KMSKA) and Still Life with Chinoiseries (1906, inv. 1959, KMSKA).
Brown areas can be seen in the middle of the composition beneath the legs of the lady at the breakwater. It is unclear what Ensor's intention was with his earlier composition, but the decision to leave these brown areas visible in the final work must have been deliberate.
However the case of the round white shape to the right of the woman’s feet is different. Ensor overpainted this in its entirety, but as a result of wear, the highest points of the impastos of the underlying white shape now show through the paint layer above.
fig 7: Location of the details.
fig 8: There are areas of colour present beneath the paint layer of the Lady at the Breakwater which Ensor left partially visible. Ensor has reused canvas with partially or fully executed compositions multiple times, but whether this is an instance of such reuse is unclear. It rather seems to resemble an initial setup that is integrated into the final result in some places and covered in others at a later stage of the painting process.
fig 9: There is blue colour beneath the entire left-hand area which had already dried by the time the later paintstrokes were added. The painter deliberately allowed this blue to show through the later paint layers.
fig 10: The highest points of the impastos of underlying white paint layer are visible through the green/brown paint layer above.
Ensor applied the paint layer that covers this early composition
without hesitating, in quick, terse movements. For the most part, he used his paint – which had a satin sheen – undiluted and unmixed. The variety of application methods he used created different textures within the paint layer; this is best seen in raking light.
The way Ensor used a palette knife to apply paint can be seen beneath the horizon to the left of the breakwater where he added grey paintstrokes from left to right over an earlier application of already dry blue paint.
Ensor added the black paintstrokes of the breakwater on top of these, putting some pressure on the blade of his palette knife so that the grey underlayer remains visible. He also used a palette knife to apply the whitish-green paint he added on top of the grey. As the grey paint has not intermixed with the paintstrokes beneath, we can assume these were at least partially dry when the later paint was added.
Ensor began by applying his paint in horizontal strokes, placing firm pressure on the knife’s lower edge causing the paint to spill out above and below. He then added the vertical strokes in a downward movement with the tip of the knife pointing to the right. He did not mix the colours on his palette but partly mixed them directly on the canvas through the pressure he applied to the blade of his knife.
fig 11: Differences in texture in paint layer, detail in raking light.
fig 12: Use of palette knife in the paint layer.
Ensor made use of the underlying paintstrokes by allowing them to show through his subsequent applications of paint. Even when he opted to cover the underlying paintstrokes in full, he still left their texture apparent in the end result. This is visible in the parasol where he applied white paint over paint that he had added with his fingers, creating a rippled texture. These textural differences have sometimes caused the paint to be irregularly distributed.
fig 13: Visible white and ochre-coloured undertone at the level of the breakwater.
fig 14: Ensor applied paint with his fingers. His finger print left an impression in the dried paint. A new, pale blue paint layer was applied on top of this dry, textured paint layer.
Ensor began by roughly laying down the figure of the Lady on the breakwater with a palette knife in pale green paint. When adding the sky to the woman's right, he omitted the areas of her face and arm. Instead, he let the bluish-white colour of the sky delimit the contours of her arm and used the dark green that he subsequently used for the clothing to add a few small accents in this area. These touches of accent colour were applied on top of the blue of the sky.
Painting with a palette knife implies a rapid painting technique, and is particularly suited to laying down a compositional sketch in which adjacent areas do not always meet. The painting is more open and spontaneously painted, as a result of not everything being filled in.
fig 15: Detail of the woman.
To the left of the figure, we can see how the paintstrokes of the sea and sky were applied in phases. Beneath the figure of the woman there are thick, streaky, grey paintstrokes made with a stiff-bristled brush (approx. 1.5 cm wide).
fig 16: Dilute grey strokes with superimposed impastos added with a palette knife.
The impastos of the sea overlap the edges of the woman’s light green clothing.
Ensor applied the dark grey-green palette knife strokes last of all, manipulating one of his paintstrokes at far left by repeatedly drawing his palette knife through it.
Materials
Ensor often used his fingers to manipulate or apply paint when creating this painting. He also used his fingers in other works including Old woman with Blue Shawl (1881, inv. 1853, KMSKA) and Still Life with Oysters (1882, inv. 1412, KMSKA).
However, in the case of the Lady at the Breakwater, Ensor used his fingers in a more considered way to manipulate a large part of the paint of his initial design. This paint plays such a major role in the end result, that we can assume this was intentional on his part.
He rubbed his thumb through the still wet paint in both wavy (Figure 17 red line) and straight movements (Figure 17 blue line). It is possible to follow the path of his thumb through the paint. Under magnification, the fluidity of his finger movement is particularly apparent. Ensor put his thumb in the wet paint and dragged it downwards in a straight line, pausing briefly to change direction as we can see from by the slight kink on the left.
fig 17: Finger movement in the still wet paint layer.
fig 18: He manipulated a large part of the colour in his initial design with his fingers and as this paint plays a major role in the end result it must have been deliberate on his part. (Detail under magnification [9x]).
Ensor applied most of his paint with a palette knife. The knife he used had a fine tip (about 0.5 cm) and a blade that widened towards the base. He may also have applied a few horizontal strokes with a rectangular palette knife.
Pigment use
Ensor used a restricted palette of predominantly blue, green, white and dark pigments which have been analysed by Geert van der Snickt on the basis of seven pXRF measurements. The text below is based on these analyses1 and the results of an MA-XRF scan.
The ground is lead-based but as lead was also detected in the white paint, Ensor appears to have also used lead-white as a white pigment. Calcium was detected in the woman’s black hat which is probably a bone or ivory black, both of which are carbon-based.2
No elements were detected that can be linked to the blue pigment, which makes it likely that the blue is a synthetic ultramarine made from elements that the research techniques used are unable to identify. A yellow shade has been mixed into the white of some of the paintstrokes of the sky. The MA-XRF images mostly reveal lead and a very small amount of tin here.
The measurements on the green paint strokes indicate the use of a chrome-based green which could be chrome-oxide or viridian green, although the technique is unable to distinguish between them. Iron (Fe), as well as chrome (Cr), are detected in every measurement in the green paint, suggesting that Ensor either mixed colours together or laid layers of paint one on top of the other. The green paint also contains barium (Ba) which may have been added by the paint manufacturer; barium was often used as a paint filler in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.3
The MA-XRF scan reveals a widespread distribution of iron (Fe), mostly in the figure and the breakwater. This indicates the use of earth pigments, used in both pure and mixed forms. The iron signal in the scan often comes from the lowest layers which the naked eye perceives as the brown and yellow tones showing through the upper paint layers.
fig 19: Areas with a clear undertone, in blue, brown (grey) and white.
fig 20: XRF-scan, Fe image.
The elemental distribution maps for cadmium (Cd-K), zinc (Zn-K), antimony (Sb-K) and mercury (Hg-L) display signals that come from the paint layer beneath the Lady at the Breakwater. Only a few paintstrokes are visible and it is unclear what Ensor intended to depict here.
fig 21: Elemental distribution map for mercury (Hg-L).
fig 22: Elemental distribution map for antimony (Sb-K).
fig 23: Elemental distribution map for zinc (Zn-K).
fig 24: Elemental distribution map for Cadmium (Cd-K).
fig 25: Overlay of elemental distribution maps for mercury (red), antimony (cyan), zinc (purple) and cadmium (yellow).
Signature
Top right
Ensor
80
Part of the underlying paint layer around the signature can be seen to have been scraped off but the capital letter E remains visible. Ensor subsequently traced over his signature in blue and black paint, although it is not clear when he did this. He did not scrape any paint off beneath the year.
It seems that Ensor began by scratching his signature into the already dry paint layer in a manner not dissimilar to the way he signed The Wait (1879 and/or 1882, inv. 2074, KMSKA) and The Skeleton Painter (1896, inv. 3112, KMSKA), although in the latter case he added his signature to paint that was still wet.
fig 26: Detail of the signature in normal light.
Damage and restorations
We can observe extensive craquelure in the paint layer as well as lacunae in the paint and ground layer at the edges of the canvas and occasionally in more central areas. The paint loss at the edges of the canvas was caused by friction from the frame.
The paint layer is covered by a heavy layer of grime. The layer of paint, despite its multi-layered structure, is quite thin and fragile. This is further exacerbated by the very thin canvas, which cannot absorb the movements of the paint layer.
fig 27: Extensive craquelure.
fig 28: Paint loss along the cracks.
The side bars of the stretcher have left marks in the paint layer at the front of the work and have caused vertical cracks to form.
A few localised retouches have been made to the work. These contain titanium and can be seen most clearly on the elemental distribution map for titanium (Ti-K). See the white arrow for a retouche to the woman’s clothing, added to make the very fine craquelure appear less obvious.
The UV image shows that these retouches were applied on top of the varnish layer.
fig 29: MA-XRF scan, titanium (Ti-K) map.
fig 30: MA- XRF scan, iron(Fe-K) map.
fig 31: Retouche in woman’s clothing (x9).
In some areas at the edges of the work, gold leaf can be seen on top of the paint and varnish layers. This is gold from the frame, displaced through friction. This suggests that the frame may have been regilded and that the painting was returned to its frame before the new gilding was fully dry.
fig 32: Detail on the upper left, where gold leaf can be seen.
