1. Léon Spilliaert, Marine après l’orage, vers 1909, Aquarelle, lavis d’encre de Chine, pinceau,crayon de couleur sur papier, 490 × 637 mm (jour), Collection particulière, Photo: Renaud Schrobiltgen, Bruxelles
Beyond the figure of Léon Spilliaert
Until the end of May 2023, the Fondation de l'Hermitage in Lausanne present a large retrospective of the most important Belgian artist of his time: Léon Spilliaert (Ostend 1881- Brussels 1946). The show, which is curated by Anne Adriaens-Pannier, a specialist of the artist and the author of the upcoming catalogue raisonné is divided into chronological or thematic sections: Inks, existential solitude | Ostend, the depth of night and space | The sea, mirror of a state of mind | Fishermen's Wives and Bathers, on the Shores of Reality | Feminine solitude, unusual interiors | Still lifes, the strange inanimate | Literature, the discreet charm of illustration | Self-portrait, gaze, concern | The Belgium II airship, a shared adventure | Trees, the first contemplatives | The North Sea, changing mood.
2. Léon Spilliaert, Autoportrait aux masques, août 1903, Crayon graphite, lavis d’encre de Chine, pinceau, plume et crayon de couleur sur papier, 273 × 272 mm, Paris, musée d’Orsay, Photo RMN-Grand Palais (musée d’Orsay) / Stéphane Maréchalle
Ostend - Bruges - Brussels - etc...
In the history of the Fondation de l'Hermitage, it's not the first time the self-taught artist is exhibited. The first time was in 2007 in the exhibition "La Belgique dévoilée" (25.01 – 28.05.2007), and a second time in the 2019 exhibition "Ombres" (28.06 – 27.10.2019). Now the artist is presented with 103 artworks coming from 54 lenders. After two years of preparation, the curators of the exhibition have asked many private collections to loan their precious works, thus the show present never seen works from his 5,000 sheets he produces during his life.
The artist, which was very close to his family was born in Ostende. Due to his wealthy family and the business of his parent which were the director of a luxury fragrance facility which supplies the court of King Leopold II, he had the chance to decide what he wanted to do in life. He first thought about working for the marine, but he failed the exam. He later chooses to become an artist and study in Paris and Bruges but he decided to stop and learn by himself.
3. Léon Spilliaert, Nuage déferlant sur la plage, vers 1900-1902, Lavis d’encre de Chine, pinceau, plume sur papier, 193 × 308 mm KBR – Cabinet des Estampes – no inv. 5V 75052, Photo KBR
In the first room of the exhibition, you can see his earliest works. They are very small in scale but quite detail for an "amateur", which only left the art school and started to use a complex technique, India ink wash on paper. Those works were made between 1900 and 1904, and they only depict the reality of the port of Ostende and the views from his town, the streets, the sky, etc. What's intriguing is that he only sketches outside, and later in his house, he created his final work.
The following rooms of the first-floor showcase quite dark oeuvres, ranging from his depiction of the port, the street of his town and the light. The composition of this decade become more and more abstract and geometrical, they also become more colourful and radian with the use of reds, blues, greens and yellows.
Between 1907 and 1908, he decided to move out from his parents house and to rend a small flat on the third floor of a building overlooking the port of Ostend. At the time he was 28 years old, and he decided to explore the shifting perspective from his windows and the view of the ports. If you look closely at those composition, you find out that the perspective point and the horizon is higher in the composition.
On the first floor, the scenes are becoming more familiar, depicting the jars of the atelier of his parents, a series of portraits, still-lifes and figures of his times coming from the Cabaret or Bawdy-house.
The lower level is dedicated to his latest and most celebrated oeuvre, from his work self-portrait, his depictions of the landscapes and the airships to the final room dedicated to his illustration made for an unpublished book.
4. Léon Spilliaert, L’Attente, décembre 1908, Crayon, lavis d’encre de Chine, pinceau, crayon de couleur, craie de couleur et griffures sur papier, 654 × 501 mm, The Hearn Family Trust, Photo The Hearn Family Trust, New York
On a personal note, I think this exhibition might be one of the most impressive of the Fondation de l'Hermitage in a long time. Beside the exhibition on the "Pastel" in 2018, this show can be linked to the exhibition of "Hans Emmenegger" in 2021 and his dark and somber depiction of his environment.
Beside this comparison, I would have love to have more contemporary presentation or dialogue with the artist he was inspired by such as Edvard Munch or James Ensor, and have more explanation on the society of the time and the importance of his trips in France and in Europe in general.
Informations about the exhibition
Place: Fondation de l'Hermitage
Date: 27.1.2023 – 29.5.2023
Curators: Anne Adriaens-Pannier, Sylvie Wuhrmann et Aurélie Couvreur
Ticket: Available online OR at the front desk of the museum
Informations about the Fondation de l'Hermitage
Route du Signal 2
CH-1018 Lausanne
Phone: +41 21 320 50 01