William Degouve de Nuncquesartist • painterMonthermé (Frankrijk) 1867-1935 Stavelot (België)

The Franco-Belgian painter William Degouve de Nuncques was largely self-taught, but mainly under the influence of Jan Toorop, whom he met around 1883, he developed into a prominent symbolist and luminist. He became known for his calm, hushed landscapes in which he deliberately simplified forms to create an atmosphere of poetry and mysticism. To this end, even after 1900, he occasionally opted for an impressionistic design language. The painter was a member of the avant-garde painters group Les XX and from 1905 of La Vie et Lumière. During the war years Degouve de Nuncques lived and worked in Holland (1914-1919).