1865 -1916 · Belgium, The XX, neo-impressionism and decorative arts

Colorful dots, sensitive profiles, North Sea beaches and decorative compositions make Georges Lemmen a refined voice of Belgian neo-impressionism.

Georges Lemmen was born in Schaerbeek in 1865. Formed briefly at the drawing school of Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, he developed most of his practice independently. In 1888, he joined the Brussels group of XX, a decisive place for exchanges between Belgian and French avant-gardes. The presentations of Georges Seurat and Paul Signac in Brussels led him to adopt the division of tones and optical mixing. Beach in Heist, painted in 1891, had points and short touches on a small panel whose density constructed the sky, sand, sea and silhouettes. The coast at Heist, painted in 1891, has points and short touches on a small panel whose density constructed the sky, sand, sea and silhouettes. The coast is not dissolved: it is ordered by wide horizontal bands and a curve of dike which stabilize chromatic vibration. The Thames, The Coast at Heyst and the views of Dover extend this research into the ports, water and atmospheres of the North. Lemmen also applies the neo-impressionist method to portraiture. Émile Verhaeren, Grégoire Le Roy and members of his family appear in compositions where profile, arabesque and color distribution count as much as resemblance. After the mid-1890s, he gradually softened pointillism. The interiors of Au lit, nudes, flowers and family portraits favored a broader touch and silent intimacy. At the same time, Lemmen designed posters, wallpapers, textiles, illustrations, ceramics and bindings. His taste for line and repetition links painting, neo-impressionism and Art Nouveau. Died in Uccle in 1916, he left a diverse body of work whose unity is less due to a unique technique than to the search for a balance between constructed color, human presence and decorative rhythm. The "Georges Lemmen" selection notably compares Plage à Heist and Scène de la Thames. His reading favors the material.

Lemmen vibrates color without losing structure: dots, bands and arabesques together maintain the light of the landscape and the decorative order of the surface.