17 Facts About Antoine Wiertz

Antoine Joseph Wiertz was a Belgian painter, sculptor, lithographer and art writer.

Antoine Wiertz is known for his religious, historical, and allegorical works and portraits.

Antoine Wiertz was an eccentric figure who originally was much influenced by the works of Peter Paul Rubens and Michelangelo.

Antoine Wiertz's father had previously been a soldier in Napoleon I's army and was, from 1814 until his death in 1822, a brigadier in the military police of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, Antoine Wiertz's father reportedely instilled in him the ambition to become a great man.

Antoine Wiertz helped him secure a place at the Antwerp art academy in 1820, when he was only 14 years old.

From that moment on, the oeuvre of Rubens would remain for Antoine Wiertz a shining example to be emulated.

In 1828, Antoine Wiertz came out second in the competition for the prestigious Prix de Rome of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Antoine Wiertz studied the old masters at the Louvre where he admired Rubens' works but turned his nose up at contemporary French masters such as David, Gericault and Girodet, all three of whom had died a few years earlier.

Antoine Wiertz joined the French Academy at Rome in Rome, where he resided from May 1834 until February 1837.

Antoine Wiertz submitted the work for the Paris Salon of 1838, but it arrived too late and was refused.

In 1844, Antoine Wiertz painted a second version of his Patrocles on an even bigger scale than the first.

Antoine Wiertz received national recognition in his home country and was made Knight of the Order of Leopold.

Antoine Wiertz left Liege in 1845 to settle in Brussels for good.

Antoine Wiertz was a fine portrait painter, who made self-portraits at various ages.

In exchange, Antoine Wiertz donated all his works to the Belgian State, with the express proviso that they should remain in his studio both during and after his lifetime.

Antoine Wiertz's remains were embalmed in accordance with Ancient Egyptian burial rites and buried in a vault in the municipal cemetery of Ixelles.

The Antoine Wiertz Museum is one of the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium.