DEATH AND THE MASKS, 1897 by JAMES ENSOR

Ensor imparts lifelike qualities to the skull of Death in the center, with its chilling grin, and to the masks of the people; the mask becomes the face, and yet it is still a mask that tries to cover up the spiritual hollowness of the bourgeoisie and the decadence of the times.

The crowded composition suggests that this is a pervasive problem and that the painting is the artist's critique of contemporary society. Ensor had an interest in masks because his mother owned a souvenir shop selling such articles as these papier mache masks worn at carnival time in Belgium. Ensor desired a return to the "pure and natural" local carnivals and festivals of his native Belgium with a view toward creating cultural unity, but realized that tourism, commercialization, and industrialization would prevent that from happening.

Moreover, Ensor was heir to the whole Northern tradition of caricature, the grotesque, and fantasy, as seen in the work of Hieronymus Bosch and even Pieter Bruegel. But as opposed to the naturalistic underpinnings of the work of Bosch and Bruegel, Ensor works with a light, bright palette that suggests whimsy and absurdity at the same time that he employs a rough and textural application of paint, which signals the depth and horror of the malaise of the times

James Ensor

death and the masks

1897

Louca para ver alguma decoração de Halloween inspirada em James Ensor.

 How I wish to see a James Ensor theme type of decoration!

* Intriga . the intrigue . 1890

* Esqueletos brigando por um enforcado  .  Skeletons fighting over a hanged man . 1891

* A surpresa da casa das mascaras . The astonishment of the mask house. 1889

* Esqueletos se aquecendo . Skeletons trying to warm themselves 1889

* Mascaras rindo da morte .  Masks mocking death .1888

Death and the masks. 1897. James Ensor

Masks Confronting Death, 1888. James Ensor.

Keeping it creepy, a few images from 'Alfred Kubin: Confessions of a Tortured Soul,' the first overview in a decade on Kubin’s gothic pageant of dreamworld menace — with related artists in context.⁠ ⁠ The art of the great Austrian draftsman, illustrator and author Alfred Kubin (1877–1959) appears more current today than ever before; wartime destruction, pandemics, natural disasters and the manipulation of the masses pervade his highly narrative works. Kubin’s nightmarish oeuvre extends Symbolism and the fantastical art of the 19th century and may be considered a precursor to French Surrealism, with its syntheses of actual and imaginary reality, its bleak realms that Kubin often seasoned with humor, irony and exaggeration.⁠ ⁠ Featured here: ⁠ 1 ALFRED KUBIN, The Horror, c. 1902⁠ 2 ALFRED KUBIN, Into the Unknown, 1900/01⁠ 3 FRANCISCO JOSÉ DE GOYA Y LUCIENTES, The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters, c. 1799⁠ 4 ALFRED KUBIN, The Lady on the Horse, c. 1900/01⁠ 5 ALFRED KUBIN, Death as a Horseman, 1906⁠ 6 FERNAND KHNOPFF, With Verhaeren. An Angel, 1889⁠ 7 JAMES ENSOR, Baptism of Masks, 1925/30⁠ ⁠ Published by @buchhandlungwaltherfranzkoenig⁠ ⁠ Read more via linkinbio.⁠ ⁠ #halloween #alfredkubin #torturedsoul #horror #gothic #goya #ensor #khnopff #monster #skull https://www.instagram.com/p/CkTkfRzJJHr/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

New painting created for a future exhibition on the theme of carnival and masks.

Very freely inspired by the work "Death and the Masks" by the Belgian painter James Ensor (THE carnival painter).

The masks represent both life (bright carnival colors) and death (the skeleton on the right), night (the moon) and day (the sun). The 3 masks on the left also symbolize human emotions (sadness, anger and joy respectively). The masks on the left are reminiscent of those of European carnivals, while the skeleton head refers to Mexican culture and its colorful relationship with death, which we find particularly during the Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos). This work is part of my approach which consists of creating bridges between sometimes very different cultures, but also between the ancient (the traditions of carnival and All Saints' Day) and the modern (the colorful style is resolutely anchored in its era).

Posca on black Canson drawing paper. Format A4.

James Ensor. Masks Confronting Death, 1888. Oil on canvas

Oil Painting on Wood

Working on smaller wood panels, instead of painting tiny little figures, I painted the face silhouette quite zoned in on the panel. Doing the face so close up let me create really textured brush marks. I refrained from working into it too much so it the darker paint beneath wouldn’t mix and make the painting dark. The brush marks are what first grab my attention. 

The block like face silhouettes were inspired by James Ensor paintings, particularly from his work Masks Confronting Death, 1888. In which the faces of the figures, when viewed closely, appear like blocks of different toned colours placed together to create an illusion of depth. His painting has a similar uncanny feeling throughout it. The faces of the figures aren’t human like but feel familiar somehow. In his piece Portrait of the Painter in a Flowered Hat, 1883, he treats the background differently with his brush than he does the man. Within the figure, there’s layers upon layers of colour that create a detailed texture. He uses fewer colours for his background when layering, but applies it in wider strokes with less intensity. Which inspired me to explore the ability of separating elements with texture and medium. When I used aniseed on the figure, I would use a solvent for the background and the same vice versa. This lead me to fuse the methods together to see what the outcome would be. 

James Ensor influenced my oil paintings the most out of the artists that I have researched. I identified his techniques and came up with various approaches to perform on my own, which benefited my work for the better. Despite not following tutorials or looking up guides to oil painting, the best way to learn a process is by analysing those who inspire you and trying to learn it for yourself without instruction. All the oil paintings have turned out better than I ever initiated and I didn’t expect that learning a new medium of paint would make me excited to paint again. 

Masks Confronting Death by James Ensor

James Ensor, Masks Confronting Death, 1888

That’s us

James Ensor, Masks Confronting Death (1888)

James Ensor, La Mort poursuivant le troupeau des humains (Death Pursuing the Flock of Humans), 1896

Source

Masks Confronting Death, James Ensor

Death and the Masks, 1897, James Ensor

https://www.wikiart.org/en/james-ensor/death-and-the-masks-1897