Willy Schlobachartist • painter • watercolourist • draughtsmanBrussel 1865-1951 Nonnenhorn (Duitsland)

The Belgian-German artist Willy Schlobach, painter and watercolourist of landscapes, seascapes, portraits and still lifes, was one of the most talked-about painters in Belgium in the eighties of the 19th century. He was educated at the Brussels Academy (1878-1880), where he became friends with Théo van Rysselberghe and with whom he co-founded the famous avant-garde artists' group Les XX (1883) in 1883. In the years that followed, he could regularly be found in the seaside resort of Ostend with his friend Willy Finch. A number of well-known paintings of the sea and the harbour entrance were created there. While traveling to London during this time, Schlobach became impressed with the work of Whistler and Turner. After a few years (1887-1890) experimenting with neo-impressionism - Seurat called him 'the best Belgian divisionist' - the painter returned to impressionism. In the late 1940s he moved to Germany.