Tribulations of Saint Anthony
James Ensor
Belgian, 1860–1949
1887
An oil on canvas in which James Ensor turns the story of Saint Anthony’s temptations into a hallucinatory carnival of masks, monsters, and floating apparitions that satirize and subvert the sacred tale.
A wide, luminous field of scraped, pale paint is punctured by frantic, scratchy marks and clusters of tiny, often ridiculous figures—masks, skeletons, and hybrid creatures—that drift between shore and sky, making the eye flip between empty atmosphere and crowded grotesque detail.
By fusing religious allegory with carnival grotesques and expressive, experimental brushwork, Ensor helped steer European painting toward Symbolism and Expressionism and anticipated modern explorations of the uncanny and unconscious.
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
46 3/8 x 66" (117.8 x 167.6 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
Purchase
Accession
1642.1940
Palette
Art Terms
Exhibitions
