Fernand Khnopff

 'a wonderfully rich interpretation of the complex work of one of Belgium’s most important artists in a way that may be of interest to a wide variety of scholars from various disciplines within the humanities, from cultural history to aesthetics and the philosophy of art' - CAA Reviews

A comprehensive look at an important member of the artistic vanguard of late 19th- and early 20th-century Europe - the  Belgian Symbolist painter Fernand Khnopff

In this beautifully illustrated book, Michel Draguet, an internationally recognized authority on fin-de-siècle art, offers an enlightening examination of the life and art of Belgian Symbolist painter Fernand Khnopff (1858-1921). Khnopff achieved widespread acclaim during his lifetime for his moody, dreamlike paintings, as well as his numerous commissioned portraits, designs for costumes and sets for the theatre and opera, photography, sculpture, book illustrations, and writings. Khnopff was a reclusive personality, and in 1900 he focused his attention on the design and construction of a lavish, secluded home and studio in Brussels, a structure that became deeply entwined with the artist's work and sense of self.

The book is wide-ranging and touches on Khnopff’s role in symbolist art; his position on the European stage (England, France, Germany, and Austria); his position vis-à-vis modernity; his discrete yet also somewhat distant presence in Belgian cultural life; his versatility as an artist and a painter, sculptor, book illustrator, and designer; his ambiguous involvement in photography; his relationship with other artists, writers, and musicians, and with architecture, especially through his own peculiar, no longer extant villa-studio and his work in the Palais Stoclet in Brussels.

A highlight is the inclusion of new archival research to reconstruct villa Khnopff to guide the reader through Khnopff's very personal world and analyzing his art in the context of its generative surroundings.

Rather than take a traditional biographical structure, Draguet sets out to connect Khnopff with his cultural environment - the result is a rich and rewarding read.

Details

• Author: Michel Draguet
  
• Hardcover: 304 pages | 210 colour illustrations
  
• Date published: November 2019
  
• Language: English
  
• ISBN: 978-0300246506
• Product Dimensions: 28.1 x 24.7 cm