Abandoning conventional formats of the time, the artist created scenes filled with humour, tenderness and insolence for the pleasure of the public. His work and his way of life reflect the freedom of spirit and creativity that characterise his drawings, engravings and illustrations.Īn exceptional engraver and drawer, Félicien Rops captured and anticipated women's bodies with great modernity. The Belgian artist followed this virtuous path his entire life. "Rops am I, virtuous am I not, hypocrite I do not deign". There he met Artan, Dubois, Charles De Groux, Constantin Meunier, and more, the future upholders of realism in Belgium. Two years later, he enrolled at the "Atelier libre Saint-Luc", one of the meeting places for Brussels bohemians, where he exchanged avant-garde ideas. He became their official artist and, with great talent, he learned the art of lithography. He quickly found his place among the most active student circles: the "Société des Joyeux" and the "Cercle des Crocodiles". There, he met several Namur friends and formed new relationships, including one of prime importance with the author Charles De Coster. In 1851, Rops enrolled at the Université libre de Bruxelles (Free University of Brussels) to study philosophy in preparation for a law degree. He was definitely one of the fieriest artists of his generation, a painter, a watercolourist, a designer, an illustrator and an engraver, the provocateur Félicien Rops was born in Namur on 7 July 1833.
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