The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 29, 2024

The Garden of the Rousseau Family

The Garden of the Rousseau Family

1885
(Belgian, 1860–1949)
Framed: 96.2 x 82.6 x 9.3 cm (37 7/8 x 32 1/2 x 3 11/16 in.); Unframed: 75.5 x 61 cm (29 3/4 x 24 in.)

Did You Know?

James Ensor painted in a wide variety of styles and techniques, his subjects varying from realistic landscapes like this one to fantastical imagined scenes from literature and theater. The sea in his hometown of Ostend, Belgium, was also a favorite subject.

Description

This painting depicts the garden of the artist’s close friends Ernest and Mariette Rousseau, with whom he often stayed at their home in Brussels, Belgium. He rendered this view of their garden in a technique of bold color applied with strong, broken brushstrokes. It is not known whether Ensor painted this work from life or memory, but the garden, empty of people, hints at feelings of social alienation, a dominant theme in his work.
  • 1885-1890
    James Ensor, sold to Ernst and/or Mariette Rousseau at the salon of Les XX (no. 11)
    1890-at least 1908
    Ernest [1831-1908] and/or Mariette [1850-1926] Rousseau, Brussels
    Henry van de Velde [1863-1957], Wassenaar, the Netherlands
    1930
    (Galerie Giroux, Brussels, sale, February 10, 1930, lot 41)
    After 1930-1946
    (Sam Salz, New York, sold to Leonard C. Hanna, Jr.)
    1946-1950
    Leonard C. Hanna Jr., Cleveland, OH, by gift to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1950-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio
  • Verhaeren, Emile. James Ensor. Bruxelles: G. Van Oest & cie, 1908.
    Galerie Georges Giroux, and J.-F Elsander. Bulletin Et Catalogue Des Expositions James Ensor, 7. Au 18. Jan. 1920. Bruxelles. Reproduced: no. 20
    Le Roy, Grégoire. James Ensor. Bruxelles, Belgium : G. van Oest, 1922. Reproduced: p. 112
    Haesaerts, Luc, and Paul Haesaerts. Flandre; essai sur l'art flamand depuis 1880. Paris, France: Éditions des Chroniques du jour, G. di San Lazzaro, éditeur, 1931. Reproduced: p. 662
    Van Diemen-Lilienfeld Galleries (New York, N.Y.). Modern Belgian Art in Private American Collections: [Exhibit] at the Van Diemen-Lilienfeld Galleries, from May 13th to May 26th, 1950. New York, NY: [publisher not identified], 1950. Reproduced: no.11
    Cleveland Museum of Art, “Recent Acquisition Press Release,” July, 1951, Cleveland Museum of Art Archives. archive.org
    Tricot, Xavier. James Ensor: Catalogue Raisonné of the Paintings. Antwerp, Belgium: Pandora Ortelius, 1992.
    Tricot, Xavier. James Ensor: Catalogue Raisonné of the Paintings. London: P. Wilson, 1992.
    Ollinger-Zinque, Gisèle. Ensor: Musées Royaux Des Beaux-Arts De Belgique, Brussels, Belgium. Wommelgem: Blondé Artprinting International, 1999. Reproduced: p. 134, no. 71
    Argencourt, Louise d', and Roger Diederen. Catalogue of Paintings. Pt. 4. European Paintings of the 19th Century. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1974. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 256-258, Vol. I, no. 93
    Tricot, Xavier. James Ensor. Ostfildern: Hatje Cantz, 2009.
    Willsdon, Clare A. P. Impressionist Gardens. Edinburgh, Scotland: National Galleries of Scotland, 2010. Mentioned: p. 100-101; Reproduced: p. 163, fig. 66p.
    Willsdon, Clare A. P. Jardines impresionistas. Madrid, Spain: Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, 2010. Reproduced: p. 162
    Ensor, James. James Ensor. Lyon: Fage Editions, 2023. Reproduced: p. 17
  • Stories From Storage. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 7-May 16, 2021).
    Painting the Modern Garden: Monet to Matisse. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 6, 2015-January 5, 2016).
    Impressionist Gardens. National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh (July 31-October 17, 2010); Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, Spain (November 23, 2010-February 27, 2011).
    James Ensor Retrospective. Musée d'Art Moderne, Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts de Belgique, Brussels, Belgium (September 24, 1999-February 13, 2000).
    Ways of Painting Landscapes. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 13-May 6, 1953).
    Modern Belgian Art in Private American Collections. Van Diemen-Lillienfield Galleries, New York, NY (1950).
  • {{cite web|title=The Garden of the Rousseau Family|url=false|author=James Ensor|year=1885|access-date=29 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1950.582