Félicien Rops (photo).jpeg
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Félicien Victor Joseph Rops (7 July 1833 – 23 August 1898) was a Belgian artist associated with
Symbolism Symbolism or symbolist may refer to: Arts * Symbolism (arts), a 19th-century movement rejecting Realism ** Symbolist movement in Romania, symbolist literature and visual arts in Romania during the late 19th and early 20th centuries ** Russian sym ...
, Decadence, and the Parisian . He was a painter, illustrator, caricaturist and a prolific and innovative print maker, particularly in intaglio (
etching Etching is traditionally the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio (incised) in the metal. In modern manufacturing, other chemicals may be used on other types ...
and
aquatint Aquatint is an intaglio (printmaking), intaglio printmaking technique, a variant of etching that produces areas of tone rather than lines. For this reason it has mostly been used in conjunction with etching, to give both lines and shaded tone. ...
). Although not well known to the general public, Rops was greatly respected by his peers and actively pursued and celebrated as an illustrator by the publishers, authors, and poets of his time. He provided frontispieces and illustrations for works by
Jules Barbey d'Aurevilly Jules-Amédée Barbey d'Aurevilly (2 November 1808 – 23 April 1889) was a French novelist and short story writer. He specialised in mystery tales that explored hidden motivation and hinted at evil without being explicitly concerned with anythin ...
,
Charles Baudelaire Charles Pierre Baudelaire (, ; ; 9 April 1821 – 31 August 1867) was a French poet who also produced notable work as an essayist and art critic. His poems exhibit mastery in the handling of rhyme and rhythm, contain an exoticism inherited ...
, Charles De Coster,
Théophile Gautier Pierre Jules Théophile Gautier ( , ; 30 August 1811 – 23 October 1872) was a French poet, dramatist, novelist, journalist, and art and literary critic. While an ardent defender of Romanticism, Gautier's work is difficult to classify and rema ...
,
Joris-Karl Huysmans Charles-Marie-Georges Huysmans (, ; 5 February 1848 – 12 May 1907) was a French novelist and art critic who published his works as Joris-Karl Huysmans (, variably abbreviated as J. K. or J.-K.). He is most famous for the novel '' À rebour ...
, Stéphane Mallarmé, Joséphin Péladan,
Paul Verlaine Paul-Marie Verlaine (; ; 30 March 1844 – 8 January 1896) was a French poet associated with the Symbolist movement and the Decadent movement. He is considered one of the greatest representatives of the '' fin de siècle'' in international and ...
,
Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his ''nom de plume'' M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his criticism of Christianity—es ...
, and many others. Best known today for his prints and drawings illustrating erotic and occult literature of the period, he also produced oil paintings including landscapes, seascapes, and occasional genre paintings. Rops is recognized as a pioneer of Belgian comics.Robert L. Delevoy (1978) Symbolists and Symbolism. Skira/Rizzoli International Publications, Inc., New York, 247 pp.Jean Cassou (1979) The Concise Encyclopedia of Symbolism. Chartwell Books, Inc., Secaucus, New Jersey, 292 pp. 8, 94, 130-131 pp./ref>Lambiek Comiclopedia: Félicien Rops. Entry by Kjell Knudde. https://www.lambiek.net/artists/r/rops_felicien.htmPatrick Bade (2003) Félicien Rops. Parkstone Press Ltd, New York, 95 pp.


Biography


Childhood and education (1833–1857)

Rops was born 7 July 1833 in Namur, Belgium, the
only child An only child is a person with no siblings, by birth or adoption. Children who have half-siblings, step-siblings, or have never met their siblings, either living at the same house or at a different house—especially those who were born consider ...
of Sophie Maubile and Nicholas Rops. The Rops were a well-off bourgeois family, their wealth coming from textile manufacturing. Félicien was educated at his home by private tutors until the age of ten; then in 1843, he enrolled in a local Jesuit school for the next five years. His ability to recite lengthy passages from the Bible in Latin attest to both a good education and his intelligence, although even as a schoolboy it is reported that he had "begun to let fantasy dominate his thinking" and received complaints about "his passion for producing uninhibited caricatures of his teachers".Lee Revens and J.-K. Huysmans (1975) ''The Graphic Work of Félicien Rops''. Léon Amiel Publisher, New York. 288 pp. -11 pp./ref> Nicholas Rops died in 1849. After some disagreements between Rops and his mother over the direction of his future education, a compromise was reached, and in June 1849 he enrolled at the Athénée secondary school in Namur while simultaneously attending the Academy of Fine Arts there.Hoffmann, Edith, "Rops, Félicien", Oxford Art Online In 1851, Rops moved to Brussels and began studying law at the University of Brussels. However, by 1853, he was attending the Académie de Saint-Luc where he studied drawing and developed his skill as a draughtsman working from live models, meeting others like Louis Artan,
Constantin Meunier Constantin Meunier (12 April 1831 – 4 April 1905) was a Belgian painter and sculptor. He made an important contribution to the development of modern art by elevating the image of the industrial worker, docker and miner to an icon of moder ...
, and Charles de Groux, and taking part in the local Bohemian milieu. It was at this time that he began contributing caricatures, cartoons, and satirical
lithographs Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...
to student magazines, in particular ''Le Crocodile'' which brought him some notoriety. In 1856, Rops, along with Victor Hallaux (pseudonym Victor de la Hesbaye) and Charles De Coster progressed from student magazines to founding their own journal, ''The Uylenspiegel'', a weekly artistic and literary satirical review to which he contributed one or two lithographs an issue, more than 180 total, furthering his reputation.


Early career in Belgium, and marriage (1857–1870)

In June 1857, Rops married Charlotte Polet de Faveaux, the daughter of a wealthy magistrate and owner of Thozée Castle (see external links below) in the countryside near the town of Mettet, Belgium. For the first few years at Thozée, Rops enjoyed a comfortable life of a country gentlemen, pursuing passions for painting, botany, and even founding a rowing club in 1862, the Royal Nautical Club of Sambre and Meuse. He spoke highly of his father-in-law in his letters. Rops and his wife had a son, Paul, in 1858, and a daughter, Juliet, in 1859, who died at the age of five. Rops relinquished his managerial roll at ''Uylenspiegel'' but continued contributing cartoons and illustrations until 1862. He began to explore etching and produced political lithographs, occasional caricatures and cartoons for magazines, and frontispieces and illustrations for books. He illustrated a number of De Coster's books including ''Légendes Flamandes'' (1858), ''Contes Brabançons'' (1861) and ''La Légende d'Uylenspiegel'' (' Tijl Uilenspiegel', 1867). His home became a gathering place for artists, writers, publishers and friends. The ''
Société Libre des Beaux-Arts The Société Libre des Beaux-Arts ("Free Society of Fine Arts") was an organization formed in 1868 by Belgian artists to react against academicism and to advance Realist painting and artistic freedom. Based in Brussels, the society was active un ...
'' (''Free Society of Fine Arts'') in Brussels was founded in 1868 and Rops served as Vice-President for several years. By the 1860s, Rops was traveling extensively and dividing his time between Thozée Castle, Namur, Brussels, and Paris each year; with ever extending time in Paris at the center of the art and literary world, and ever decreasing time at Thozée Castle and Namur with his wife and family as the decade passed.Félicien Rops Biography. Musée Félicien Rops, Province de Numar. Accessed 12 September 2019 https://www.museerops.be/biographie In 1862, he studied etching with
Félix Bracquemond Félix Henri Bracquemond (22 May 1833 – 29 October 1914) was a French painter, etcher, and printmaker. He played a key role in the revival of printmaking, encouraging artists such as Édouard Manet, Edgar Degas and Camille Pissarro to use th ...
and Jules Ferdinand Jacquemart in Paris and he became a restless experimenter with etching techniques. In later years, with his friend
Armand Rassenfosse Armand Rassenfosse (6 August 1862 – 28 January 1934) was a largely self-taught Belgian graphic artist, book illustrator and painter. His masterwork was a set of illustrations for Charles Baudelaire's ''Les Fleurs du mal''. Early years Armand Ra ...
they developed a new soft ground varnish method which was dubbed "Ropsenfosse". His activity as a lithographer had ceased by 1865, and although he continued oil painting, etching became his principal medium. He produced 34 frontispieces for books published between 1864 and 1870 and founded the short-lived ''International Society of Etchers'' (1869–1871).


Relationship with Charles Baudelaire (1862–1867)

Baudelaire wrote the following tribute to Rops:
Use all your eloquence..../ To say how much I like / That bizarre Mr. Rops / Who may not be a Rome First Prize / But whose talent is as great / As the pyramids of Cheops.
Rops created the frontispiece for Baudelaire's ''Les Épaves'' (''The Wreckage'') and a selection of poems from ''
Les Fleurs du mal ''Les Fleurs du mal'' (; en, The Flowers of Evil, italic=yes) is a volume of French poetry by Charles Baudelaire. ''Les Fleurs du mal'' includes nearly all Baudelaire's poetry, written from 1840 until his death in August 1867. First publish ...
'' (''The Flowers of Evil'') that had been censored in France, and were therefore published in Belgium. Rops first met Baudelaire's publisher
Auguste Poulet-Malassis Paul Emmanuel Auguste Poulet-Malassis (16 March 1825 – 11 February 1878) was a French printer and publisher who lived and worked in Paris. He was a longstanding friend and the printer-publisher of Charles Baudelaire. Biography In his short six ...
in 1862 and was later introduced to
Charles Baudelaire Charles Pierre Baudelaire (, ; ; 9 April 1821 – 31 August 1867) was a French poet who also produced notable work as an essayist and art critic. His poems exhibit mastery in the handling of rhyme and rhythm, contain an exoticism inherited ...
towards the end of the poet's life. A friendship developed and Baudelaire visited the Rops family at Thozée Castle on many occasions and they traveled together on at least one occasion. In a letter (25 August 1886) discussing Baudelaire's writing, Rops wrote: "I lived with Baudelaire for two years. and often served him as a secretary, I never once saw him consult a dictionary. He didn't have any, and didn't want to have any...saying 'A man who looks up a word in a dictionary is like a conscript who, upon receiving the order to fire, looks for a cartridge in his pouch.Claude Pichois (1989) ''Baudelaire''. Hamish Hamilton Ltd. (The Penguin Group, London). In a letter to
Édouard Manet Édouard Manet (, ; ; 23 January 1832 – 30 April 1883) was a French modernist painter. He was one of the first 19th-century artists to paint modern life, as well as a pivotal figure in the transition from Realism to Impressionism. Bo ...
(11 May 1865) Baudelaire wrote, "Rops is the only true artist (in the sense in which I, and perhaps I alone, understand the word artist), that I have found in Belgium."Lois Boe Hyslop and Francis E. Hyslop, Jr. (1957) ''Baudelaire: A Self-Portrait''. Oxford University Press, London. By 1866 Baudelaire and Poulet-Malassis were both in Belgium, in self-imposed exile evading creditors. Baudelaire stated that Rops and Poulet-Malassis were the only persons who "lightened issadness in Belgium".Félicien Rops, Baudelaire and skeleton passions. British Library, European Studies Blog, 27 October 2014. Accessed 12 September 2019 https://blogs.bl.uk/european/2014/10/f%C3%A9licien-rops-baudelaire-and-skeleton-passions.html It was while visiting Namur, in March 1866, that Baudelaire's first symptoms of
aphasia Aphasia is an inability to comprehend or formulate language because of damage to specific brain regions. The major causes are stroke and head trauma; prevalence is hard to determine but aphasia due to stroke is estimated to be 0.1–0.4% in t ...
and hemiplegia became apparent. Rops invited Baudelaire and Poulet-Malassis to visit his hometown, where Baudelaire had seen and admired the baroque Church of Saint-Loup at Namur (see external links below) before, calling it "the masterpiece of Jesuit masterpieces"Georges Poulet (1969) ''Who was Baudelaire?'' Editions d'Art Albert Skira, Geneva. 188 pp. and stating the stained-glass windows illuminated the interior like a "terrible and delightful
catafalque A catafalque is a raised bier, box, or similar platform, often movable, that is used to support the casket, coffin, or body of a dead person during a Christian funeral or memorial service. Following a Roman Catholic Requiem Mass, a catafalque ...
". Baudelaire collapsed on the floor while they were admiring the carving on the confessionals there. Baudelaire never fully recovered and died in August 1867 at the age of 46. Baudelaire left an impression upon Rops that lasted until the end of his life. His association with Baudelaire and his illustrations of his poetry helped increase the visibility of his work and win the admiration of many other artists and writers, including
Théophile Gautier Pierre Jules Théophile Gautier ( , ; 30 August 1811 – 23 October 1872) was a French poet, dramatist, novelist, journalist, and art and literary critic. While an ardent defender of Romanticism, Gautier's work is difficult to classify and rema ...
, Stéphane Mallarmé,
Jules Barbey d'Aurevilly Jules-Amédée Barbey d'Aurevilly (2 November 1808 – 23 April 1889) was a French novelist and short story writer. He specialised in mystery tales that explored hidden motivation and hinted at evil without being explicitly concerned with anythin ...
, Joséphin Péladan,
Puvis de Chavannes Pierre Puvis de Chavannes (14 December 1824 – 24 October 1898) was a French painter known for his mural painting, who came to be known as "the painter for France". He became the co-founder and president of the Société Nationale des Bea ...
,
Gustave Moreau Gustave Moreau (; 6 April 1826 – 18 April 1898) was a French artist and an important figure in the Symbolist movement. Jean Cassou called him "the Symbolist painter par excellence".Cassou, Jean. 1979. ''The Concise Encyclopedia of Symbolism.' ...
, and Edmond and Jules de Goncourt. By 1870 Rops had made many friends and was living in Paris most of the year and immersed at the heart of literary Paris and the Symbolist and Decadent movements. Taking his cue from Baudelaire's " The Painter of Modern Life", he "cultivated the airs of a dandy".
Félix Fénéon Félix Fénéon (; 22 June 1861 – 29 February 1944) was a French art critic, gallery director, writer and anarchist during the late 19th century and early 20th century. He coined the term ''Neo-Impressionism'' in 1886 to identify a group of a ...
was to write of him "Rops: Anoints himself with rouge, dyes his hair and wears a blood-red shirt: looks, or so he hopes, like a sarcastic Satan."


Later career in Paris (1871–1898)

The extended months in Paris away from his wife, and his poorly concealed extramarital affairs (described by his biographer Patrick Bade as his "careless contempt for bourgeois family values") took a toll on Rops's marriage by the early 1870s. His wife Charlotte wrote to him in a letter: "Your latest despicable affair, the eighth since I met you and we were married, was your way of punishing others, you killed me! Since you don't want to see me any more and asked me not to write to you any more, I want my last word to you to be a word of pardon". One of his mistresses—Alice Renaud, the woman referred to in his wife's letter—was murdered by her jealous husband a few years later, and Rops was involved in the scandal when his intimate love letters to her were read out loud at her husband's trial. Although they never divorced, by 1875 Félicien and Charlotte were permanently estranged and Paris was to be his home for the remainder of his life. However, far from being disheartened, he thrived among the Parisian artists and poets and his critical reputation grew. There was a greater demand than ever for his illustrations in the last quarter of the 19th century by the publishers and authors of the literary vanguard. Rops was prolific and achieved financial success, boasting in 1877 that "he was the best-paid illustrator in France." He traveled extensively throughout Europe, ranging from the capital cities and art centers, to salmon fishing in Norway and Sweden, back country ventures in Hungary, as well as Spain and Northern Africa. Rops frequently exhibited at the various salons in Paris where the public was both fascinated and shocked by his art and his personal life. In the 1860s Rops had developed an acquaintance with a Madame Duluc and her two young daughters, Aurélie and Léontine Duluc (age 14 and 17 respectively at that time). A few years later, not long before the estrangement from his wife, he began a ménage à trois with the sisters, apparently with their mother's endorsement. He had children with both, although one child died at an early age; the other, Claire, daughter of Léontine Duluc born in 1871, went on to marry the Belgian author Eugène Demolder. The Duluc sisters ran ''Maison Duluc'', a successful fashion house in Paris, for which Rops designed logos and provided advertisements. The three traveled together to the United States and Canada on two occasions to present their fashions. At least one of the sisters served as a model on occasion, and one example was the figure illustrated in Georges Camuset's ''Sonnet du Docteur'' (''The Sonnets of the Doctor''; 1884). The three lived together for over 25 years until Rops's death. They ultimately settled in La Demi-Lune, a house he purchased, on the River Seine in
Corbeil-Essonnes Corbeil-Essonnes () on the River Seine is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. Although neighboring Évry is the official seat of the Arrondissement of Évry, the sub-prefecture building ...
south of Paris, where Rops continued his passion for botany and developed new varieties of roses in later years. Aurélie and Léontine often combined their names, signing ''Auréléon'' in their letters and correspondence with Rops.Huysmans, J-K. L’au-delà du mal ou l’oeuvre érotique de Félicien Rops. La Plume, No. 172: 15 juin 1896, p. 388-401. Rops was invited to join ''
Les XX ''Les XX'' ( French; "''Les Vingt''"; ; ) was a group of twenty Belgian painters, designers and sculptors, formed in 1883 by the Brussels lawyer, publisher, and entrepreneur Octave Maus. For ten years, they held an annual exhibition of their ar ...
'' or ''Les Vingt'', a group of Belgian artists formed in 1883 which held annual exhibitions and concerts at the Palais des Beaux-Arts and the Museum of Modern Art of Brussels. Founders of the Les Vingt included
James Ensor James Sidney Edouard, Baron Ensor (13 April 1860 – 19 November 1949) was a Belgian painter and printmaker, an important influence on expressionism and surrealism who lived in Ostend for most of his life. He was associated with the artistic g ...
, Théo van Rysselberghe, and Fernand Khnopff among others and were later joined by Anna Boch, Jan Toorop, Odilon Redon, and
Paul Signac Paul Victor Jules Signac ( , ; 11 November 1863 – 15 August 1935) was a French Neo-Impressionist painter who, working with Georges Seurat, helped develop the Pointillist style. Biography Paul Signac was born in Paris on 11 November 1863. ...
. Their intention was to protect "true originality" and provide a place "where people are free, not only in fact but above all in thought." For 10 years ''Les Vingt'' championed the work of progressive artists and composers of the time including many of the
Impressionists Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating ...
, Post-Impressionists,
Pointillist Pointillism (, ) is a technique of painting in which small, distinct dots of color are applied in patterns to form an image. Georges Seurat and Paul Signac developed the technique in 1886, branching from Impressionism. The term "Pointillism" wa ...
s, and Symbolists. The French poet Stéphane Mallarmé held Tuesday evening discussions on the arts and literature at his home on 87 Rue de Rome in Paris. These talks became a place of pilgrimage attended by dozens of writers and artists of the time including Rops,
Paul Gauguin Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin (, ; ; 7 June 1848 – 8 May 1903) was a French Post-Impressionist artist. Unappreciated until after his death, Gauguin is now recognized for his experimental use of colour and Synthetist style that were distinct fr ...
,
J.-K. Huysmans Charles-Marie-Georges Huysmans (, ; 5 February 1848 – 12 May 1907) was a French novelist and art critic who published his works as Joris-Karl Huysmans (, variably abbreviated as J. K. or J.-K.). He is most famous for the novel '' À rebour ...
,
Édouard Manet Édouard Manet (, ; ; 23 January 1832 – 30 April 1883) was a French modernist painter. He was one of the first 19th-century artists to paint modern life, as well as a pivotal figure in the transition from Realism to Impressionism. Bo ...
, Edvard Munch, Odilon Redon, Paul-Marie Verlaine, and
Emile Zola Emil or Emile may refer to: Literature *'' Emile, or On Education'' (1762), a treatise on education by Jean-Jacques Rousseau * ''Émile'' (novel) (1827), an autobiographical novel based on Émile de Girardin's early life *'' Emil and the Detecti ...
. He maintained his literary associations to the end of his life and in 1896 the literary revue "
La Plume ''La Plume'' was a French bi-monthly literary and artistic review. The magazine was set up in 1889 by Léon Deschamps, who edited it for ten years and was succeeded as editor by Karl Boès from 1899 to 1914. Its offices were at number 31 rue Bo ...
" published a special edition tribute volume devoted exclusively to Rops where many of the prominent authors and artists such as
Puvis de Chavannes Pierre Puvis de Chavannes (14 December 1824 – 24 October 1898) was a French painter known for his mural painting, who came to be known as "the painter for France". He became the co-founder and president of the Société Nationale des Bea ...
,
Joris-Karl Huysmans Charles-Marie-Georges Huysmans (, ; 5 February 1848 – 12 May 1907) was a French novelist and art critic who published his works as Joris-Karl Huysmans (, variably abbreviated as J. K. or J.-K.). He is most famous for the novel '' À rebour ...
,
Octave Mirbeau Octave Mirbeau (16 February 1848 – 16 February 1917) was a French novelist, art critic, travel writer, pamphleteer, journalist and playwright, who achieved celebrity in Europe and great success among the public, whilst still appealing to the ...
, Josephin Peladan, and Jose-Maria De Heredia praised and celebrated his work. Félicien Rops was a freemason and a member of the
Grand Orient of Belgium Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and c ...
. Due to an accident with "bichlorate of potassium" in 1892, Rops almost lost his eyesight but he eventually recovered. With his health slowly deteriorating and anticipating legal challenges from his estranged wife Charlotte, his son Paul, and father-in-law, a judge in Belgium, he made a will in July 1896 leaving everything to the Duluc sisters. He spent some time in the south of France with its milder climate on a doctor's orders but it provided only a little relief. In time, legal issues did arise and the Duluc sisters successfully disputed Paul's attempts to have his father removed from their care, but compromise settlements were made on other issues. Rops died on 23 August 1898 at his home, with Aurélie and Léontine Duluc, his daughter Claire, and some close friends at his side. When notified of his imminent death, Paul traveled from Belgium, but arrived too late to see his father alive. Rops was buried in
Essonnes Corbeil-Essonnes () on the River Seine is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. Although neighboring Évry is the official seat of the Arrondissement of Évry, the sub-prefecture buildin ...
but his body was moved to the family burial grounds in Namur, Belgium eight years later. The following year, he was posthumously awarded the
Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...
. There is now a Museum, ''Musée Félicien Rops'', in his home town of Namur, Belgium, housing approximately 3,000 engravings and 500 drawings and paintings. Rops also was a gifted and prolific writer of letters. Referring to Rops, Edgar Degas told
Manet A wireless ad hoc network (WANET) or mobile ad hoc network (MANET) is a decentralized type of wireless network. The network is ad hoc because it does not rely on a pre-existing infrastructure, such as routers in wired networks or access points ...
"That one writes even better than he engraves .. If they ever publish his correspondence, I'll sign up for a thousand copies of propaganda" The Félicien Rops Museum has documented and indexed over 4,000 letters so far, over half are currently available online (see External Links below). His correspondences serve as valuable documents and references, not only for Rops and his work, but for the numerous artists, writers, publishers, and other notable culture figures of late 19th century Europe. The biographers of Baudelaire have drawn from Rops's letters extensively (e.g.).


Art

Art historians do not consider Rops a seminal figure of late 19th century art, even among the symbolists, and yet no creditable review of symbolism could ignore him either. Some of his critics dismiss him as a novel, 19th-century illustrator/pornographer, but others look beyond the erotica and write of him respectfully and favorably.Blakeley, H. R. (2015) Beyond Eros: Works by Félicien Rops in the Michael C. Carlos Museum. Carlos Museum and Emory’s Center for Digital Scholarship, Emory University, Atlanta. Accessed 23 September 2019 https://rops.digitalscholarship.emory.edu/exhibits/show/felicien-ropsEncyclopaedia Britannica (2019) Félicien Rops, Belgian Artist. (last update: 18 Aug 2019) accessed 16 October 2019 He was regarded as the greatest Belgian artist of his time by Baudelaire (an influential art critic as well as a poet). Jean-Luc Daval spoke of "the amazing upsurge of Symbolism that in the wake of Félicien Rops and under the influence of Gustave Moreau, characterized Belgian painting at the turn of the century." According to Edith Hoffmann, the "erotic or frankly pornographic" nature of much of Rops's work "is at least partly due to the attraction these subjects had for a provincial artist who never forgot his first impressions of Paris". In contrast to Hoffmann's "provincial artist",
Octave Mirbeau Octave Mirbeau (16 February 1848 – 16 February 1917) was a French novelist, art critic, travel writer, pamphleteer, journalist and playwright, who achieved celebrity in Europe and great success among the public, whilst still appealing to the ...
wrote "Painter, man of letters, philosopher, scholar, Rops was all of that." Félicien Rops was a prolific and versatile artist. In addition to works of fine art depicting
genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...
subjects, still-life, landscapes, decadent nightlife, eroticism, and iconic symbolist works like ''Pornocrates'', he produced hundreds of comics, caricatures, book illustrations, and even an occasional advertisement. His style could sway from
realism Realism, Realistic, or Realists may refer to: In the arts *Realism (arts), the general attempt to depict subjects truthfully in different forms of the arts Arts movements related to realism include: *Classical Realism *Literary realism, a move ...
, to
symbolism Symbolism or symbolist may refer to: Arts * Symbolism (arts), a 19th-century movement rejecting Realism ** Symbolist movement in Romania, symbolist literature and visual arts in Romania during the late 19th and early 20th centuries ** Russian sym ...
, and at times even touch on
romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...
and
impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...
. His images can be pastoral (e.g. ''The Rocks of the Grands Malades'') or urban (e.g. ''Sailors Den''); social and political critiques both sympathetic (e.g. ''Strike, The Charcoal'') and caustic (e.g. ''Order Reigns in Warsaw''); documentary (e.g. ''Head of Zealander'') or fantasy (e.g. ''The Librarian''); and range from poetic and metaphoric (e.g. ''The Lyre'') to stark realism (e.g. ''Absinthe Drinker''). Three etchings depicting animals illustrate a wide display of approaches in styles, techniques, and underlying connotations (see gallery II). ''Japanese Salamander and Beetle'' is loose in technique and a simple, decorative nature study, one of a few pastiches Rops made of Japanese woodblock printing that were popular and influential among European artists in the late 19th century. ''The Cat'', executed in an illustrative, near academic style, presents a pleasant likeness of a cat, yet embroidered on the chair is the phrase "Amica Non Serva" riend Not Servant endowing this unassuming image with a declaration of sovereignty not immediately apparent to the casual viewer. ''Separated or Simian Spring'' uses an abrupt and serrated hatching technique to convey primitive, psycho-sexual undertones that anticipates expressionism in the early 20th century. French art critic and historian
Jean Cassou Jean Cassou (9 July 1897 – 15 January 1986) was a French writer, art critic, poet, member of the French Resistance during World War II and the first Director of the Musée national d'Art moderne in Paris. Biography Jean Cassou was born at Bi ...
posited three distinct periods in Rops's artistic life: romantic 1855–1860; symbolist 1860–1870; realist 1871–1898. While these dates are not supported by others, and are contrary to even the most cursory examination of the work [e.g., symbolist works such as ''Pornocrates'' (1878); ''Les Sataniques'' (1882); ''The Lyre'' frontispiece for ''Poésies'' by Mallarmé (1895); and ''Parallelism'', the frontispiece for ''Chair'' 'Flesh''by Verlaine (1896) were produced in Cassou's posited "realist 1871–1898" period], Cassou's association of Rops with realism is valid and important in understanding his work. Whether drawing genre subjects or decadent Parisian nightlife, Rops produced realist images throughout his artistic life and they constitute a significant part of his oeuvre. This aspect of his work is often marginalized or ignored by authors who are preoccupied with his erotic and satanic images (enthusiastically or negatively). Working in a long and rich tradition of Franco-Flemish realist-genre painting (e.g., the Le Nain Brothers,
Adriaen Brouwer Adriaen Brouwer (, in Oudenaarde – January 1638, in Antwerp) was a Flemish painter active in Flanders and the Dutch Republic in the first half of the 17th century.
) but also showing an awareness and influence of contemporaries like
Honoré Daumier Honoré-Victorin Daumier (; February 26, 1808February 10, 1879) was a French painter, sculptor, and printmaker, whose many works offer commentary on the social and political life in France, from the Revolution of 1830 to the fall of the second N ...
,
Jean-François Millet Jean-François Millet (; 4 October 1814 – 20 January 1875) was a French artist and one of the founders of the Barbizon school in rural France. Millet is noted for his paintings of peasant farmers and can be categorized as part of the Realism ...
, and
Gustave Courbet Jean Désiré Gustave Courbet ( , , ; 10 June 1819 – 31 December 1877) was a French painter who led the Realism movement in 19th-century French painting. Committed to painting only what he could see, he rejected academic convention and ...
, Rops was attracted to genre subjects throughout his life. Although represented in any number of media, they most often appear in his drawings and etchings. The rural and working people of the
Walloon region Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—alo ...
of Belgium were frequent subjects, typically treated in a simple and sympathetic manner, as in ''The Kitchen of the Artists' Inn, in Anseremme''. The elderly appear again and again in works such as ''Old Kate''. Rops also often drew and etched people he encountered in his travels who were dressed in ethnic and regional clothing and costumes, often in a rather documentary style. Two examples include ''A Shaker Pianist'' and ''Head of Zealander'': others are ''La Dalécarlienne'' (1874), ''Le Moujick'' (1874), and ''In the Pusta'' (1879). Rops once wrote he had "the desire to depict the scenes and characters of the 19th century that I find so fascinating and curious" and pieces like ''Sailors Den'', ''Cherub's Song'', and ''The Absinthe Drinker'' can be viewed as works of realism just as they can be seen as works of the
decadent movement The Decadent movement (Fr. ''décadence'', “decay”) was a late-19th-century artistic and literary movement, centered in Western Europe, that followed an aesthetic ideology of excess and artificiality. The Decadent movement first flourishe ...
. Rops once wrote: "The love of brutal pleasures, the pre-occupation with money, and mean interests have glued onto the faces of most of our contemporaries, a sinister mask in which the perverse instinct mentioned by
Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wid ...
can be read in capital letters: all of this seems to me sufficiently amusing and characteristic that well-meaning artists should attempt to render the look of their time". According to H. R. Blakeley, "scholarship about Rops disproportionately fixates on the erotic aspects of his art, reductively classifying him as perversely misogynistic instead of investigating the complexities of his relationships with and attitudes about women."


Painting and drawing

Rops's oil paintings are varied in subject and style. They include still life paintings, street scenes such as ''Entrance to the Ball'', the Symbolist ''Death at the Ball'', and many landscapes. He painted landscapes throughout his career, often small canvases done in
En plein air ''En plein air'' (; French for 'outdoors'), or ''plein air'' painting, is the act of painting outdoors. This method contrasts with studio painting or academic rules that might create a predetermined look. The theory of 'En plein air' painting ...
. Examples like ''The Rocks of the Grands Malades'' and ''Snow in Thozée'' were painted in the vicinity of his hometown Namur, in the
Walloon region Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—alo ...
of southern Belgium. The influences of Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot,
Gustave Courbet Jean Désiré Gustave Courbet ( , , ; 10 June 1819 – 31 December 1877) was a French painter who led the Realism movement in 19th-century French painting. Committed to painting only what he could see, he rejected academic convention and ...
, and the
Barbizon School The Barbizon school of painters were part of an art movement towards Realism in art, which arose in the context of the dominant Romantic Movement of the time. The Barbizon school was active roughly from 1830 through 1870. It takes its name ...
can be detected in many of his landscapes. Living in Paris and exhibiting with Les XX, Rops had ample opportunity to meet artists and absorb the work of the schools and movements of the day, and elements of
impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...
are evident in ''The Beach in Heist'', painted on the Belgian coast. A small series of variations on a theme, ''The Lady with the Puppet'' includes four drawings with mixed media (watercolor, color pencil, pastel etc.) that were executed between 1873 and 1890. These symbolist works each show a woman, a "simple tart", playing with a puppet (an allegory of man). In one, the woman unassumingly holds a blood-smeared
trailing point Facing or trailing are railway turnouts (or 'points' in the UK) in respect to whether they are divergent or convergent. When a train traverses a turnout in a facing direction, it may diverge onto either of the two routes. When travelled in a tr ...
at her side, with which she has slit the belly of the puppet open, and amusingly holds the puppet high as gold coins drain from his limp body. About 1878–1881 Rops produced a large series of over 100 pieces he called ''Cent légers croquis pour réjouir les honnêtes gens'' (''A hundred lighthearted sketches without pretension to delight honest people'') for a Parisian bibliophile, Jules Noilly. These were made in a variety of mixed media, mostly works on paper, including drawing, color pencil, watercolor, gouache, and pastel. Examples from the series include ''The Human Parody'', ''The Librarian'', ''L'Amour Mouché, Venus and Cupid-Love blowing his nose'', and ''Cherub's Song''.


Gallery I: paintings and drawings

File:Félicien Rops - L'Entrée au bal.jpg, ''Entrance to the Ball'' (ca. 1858) Oil on canvas, mounted on board (29.5 x 21 cm) Musée Félicien Rops, Namur, Belgium File:Félicien Rops (1833-1898) De dood op het bal - Kröller-Müller Museum Otterlo 23-08-2016 13-31-56.JPG, ''Death at the Ball'' (ca. 1865–1875) oil on canvas (150 x 85 cm) Kröller-Müller Museum, Netherlands File:Felicien Rops, The Drunken Dandy (no date) mixed media on paper (39 x 48 cm) Musée Félicien Rops, Namur.jpg, ''The Drunken Dandy'' (no date) mixed media on paper (39 x 48 cm) Musée Félicien Rops, Namur File:Felicien Rops, Sailors Den (1875) watercolor, pastel, gouache (60.5 x 46.5 cm) Musée Félicien Rops, Namur.jpg, ''Sailors Den'' (1875) watercolor, pastel, gouache (60.5 x 46.5 cm) Musée Félicien Rops, Namur File:Felicien Rops, The Human Parody (1878-1881) watercolor, pastel, chalk (22.5 x 15cm).jpg, ''The Human Parody'' (1878–1881) watercolor, pastel, chalk (22.5 x 15 cm) File:Félicien Rops - Le bibliothécaire.jpg, ''The Librarian'', (1878–1881) pencil, watercolor, gouache (22 x 14.5 cm) Namur File:Felicien Rops, L'Amour Mouché, Venus and Cupid-Love blowing his nose (1878-1881) pastel, gouache, chalk (21.8 x 14.8) Musée Félicien Rops, Namur.jpg, ''L'Amour Mouché, Venus and Cupid-Love blowing his nose'' (1878–1881) mixed media (22 x 15) Musée Félicien Rops, Namur File:Félicien Rops - In de coulissen - Dans les coulisses - Fonds Courtin-Bouché - Koning Boudewijnstichting - Fondation Roi Baudouin.jpg, ''In the wings'' (1878–1880) watercolor, colored pencil, and pastel (26 x 16.5 cm) Musée Félicien Rops, Namur, Belgium File:Félicien Rops - La chanson de Chérubin 2.jpg, ''Cherub's Song'' (1878–1881) watercolor, gouache, pastel, chalk (22 x 15 cm) Musée Félicien Rops, Namur File:Félicien Rops - Passé minuit.jpg, ''After Midnight, Returning makes you appreciate absence'' (no date) mixed media (22 x 15 cm) Private collection File:Felicien Rops, Prehistoric Coupling (1887) color pencil, watercolor, gouache (30.5 x 23.6 cm.) Namur.jpg, ''Prehistoric Coupling'' (1887) color pencil, watercolor, gouache (30.5 x 23.6 cm.) Namur File:Félicien Rops - La tentation de Saint Antoine.jpg, ''Temptation of Saint Anthony'' (1878) mixed media (74 x 54) Royal Library of Belgium, Brussels File:Felicien Rops, Untitled (no date) watercolor, colored pencil (22.9 x 28.6 cm) Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.jpg, ''Untitled'' (no date) watercolor, colored pencil (22.9 x 28.6 cm) Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York File:Félicien Rops - De dame met de ledenpop - La Dame au pantin - Erfgoedfonds Koning Boudewijnstichting - Fonds du Patrimoine Fondation Roi Baudouin.jpg, ''The Lady with the Puppet'' (ca. 1883–1885) mixed media (39.4 x 27.4 cm) Musée Félicien Rops, Namur File:Paul Rops Sleeping, by Felicien Rops.jpg, ''Paul Rops Sleeping'' (ca. 1872–75), oil on canvas (size unknown) Félicien Rops Fund, Namur, Belgium File:Felicien Rops, Pears and Apple on a Plate (1882) oil on canvas (22,5 x 32 cm) Friends of the Musée Félicien Rops.jpg, ''Pears and Apple on a Plate'' (1882) oil on canvas (22,5 x 32 cm) Friends of the Musée Félicien Rops, Namur File:Félicien Rops (1876) Les Rochers des Grands Malades. Musée des Beaux Arts Ixelles.jpg, ''The Rocks of the Grands Malades'' (1876) oil on canvas, Musée des Beaux Arts Ixelles File:Félicien Rops Sneeuw te Thozée.JPG, ''Snow in Thozée'' (no date) oil on canvas, Belfius Bank & Insurance, Brussels File:Felicien Rops, The Pond of Bambois (1865) oil on panel (18.5 × 24 cm) Charleroi Museum of Fine Arts.jpg, ''The Pond of Bambois'' (1865) oil on panel (18.5 × 24 cm) Charleroi Museum of Fine Arts File:Félicien Rops (1833-1898) Meer van Bambois - Musée Félicien Rops Namen 23-03-2018 10-25-23.jpg, ''More from Bambois'' (no date) oil on canvas, Musée Félicien Rops, Namur, Belgium File:Félicien Rops (1833-1898) Het strand in Heist (1886) Musée Félicien Rops Namen 23-03-2018 10-27-00.jpg, ''The Beach in Heist'' (1886) oil on canvas, Musée Félicien Rops Namen, Belgium


Prints and book illustrations

"Rops was a printmaker of brilliant technique and original content whose handling of dry point (etching directly on the plate) marks him as one of the masters of the medium." Although Rops worked in a wide range of media, his primary means of expression was printmaking. He worked with
lithography Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...
,
wood engraving Wood engraving is a printmaking technique, in which an artist works an image or ''matrix'' of images into a block of wood. Functionally a variety of woodcut, it uses relief printing, where the artist applies ink to the face of the block and ...
,
etching Etching is traditionally the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio (incised) in the metal. In modern manufacturing, other chemicals may be used on other types ...
,
aquatint Aquatint is an intaglio (printmaking), intaglio printmaking technique, a variant of etching that produces areas of tone rather than lines. For this reason it has mostly been used in conjunction with etching, to give both lines and shaded tone. ...
,
mezzotint Mezzotint is a monochrome printmaking process of the '' intaglio'' family. It was the first printing process that yielded half-tones without using line- or dot-based techniques like hatching, cross-hatching or stipple. Mezzotint achieves tonal ...
, soft-ground etching, burin engravings,
heliogravure Photogravure (in French ''héliogravure'') is a process for printing photographs, also sometimes used for reproductive intaglio printmaking. It is a photo-mechanical process whereby a copper plate is grained (adding a pattern to the plate) an ...
and other techniques producing hundreds of prints in his life. His prints are remarkably diverse and span the full spectrum of the styles and subject matter that he explored throughout his life. He begin shifting from lithography to intaglio in the 1860s when he studied etching with
Félix Bracquemond Félix Henri Bracquemond (22 May 1833 – 29 October 1914) was a French painter, etcher, and printmaker. He played a key role in the revival of printmaking, encouraging artists such as Édouard Manet, Edgar Degas and Camille Pissarro to use th ...
and Jules Ferdinand Jacquemart in Paris. Félix Bracquemond was one of the central figures in reviving an interest in etching among artists of the time, encouraging and coaching artists such as
Édouard Manet Édouard Manet (, ; ; 23 January 1832 – 30 April 1883) was a French modernist painter. He was one of the first 19th-century artists to paint modern life, as well as a pivotal figure in the transition from Realism to Impressionism. Bo ...
, Edgar Degas, Camille Pissarro, and others to explore the neglected art form. By the end of the decade Rops had all but abandoned lithography. Rops founded the International Society of Etchers about 1869 or 1870. Although the society received praises from artists and royalty alike, financially he struggled to keep it going for more than two to three years. Fascinated by the processes, he was constantly experimenting with printmaking techniques throughout his career. Starting around the early 1870s, Rops begin using soft-ground etching, a technique practiced by few artists of his day, often combining it with mezzotint, aquatint, dry point, and other techniques, sometimes adding hand-coloring to the plates. He photo-mechanically (
heliogravure Photogravure (in French ''héliogravure'') is a process for printing photographs, also sometimes used for reproductive intaglio printmaking. It is a photo-mechanical process whereby a copper plate is grained (adding a pattern to the plate) an ...
) transferred many of his original drawings to intaglio plates, and often developed the images further in that medium with any number of techniques such as dry point, aquatint, soft-ground etching, etc. However, traditional soft-ground methods did not work well for his purposes, so in collaboration with his friend and colleague
Armand Rassenfosse Armand Rassenfosse (6 August 1862 – 28 January 1934) was a largely self-taught Belgian graphic artist, book illustrator and painter. His masterwork was a set of illustrations for Charles Baudelaire's ''Les Fleurs du mal''. Early years Armand Ra ...
, they invented a process they called "Ropsenfosse". Ropsenfosse used several different soft-ground formulas and was likely the first soft-ground method used to produce color prints with two or more plates. His etchings were popular and many of the progressive writers, poets, and publishers of late 19th-century literature sought out his talents for their publications. His prints were widely distributed in the books he illustrated and influenced many younger artists, including several Symbolists and
Expressionist Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...
such as
Max Beckmann Max Carl Friedrich Beckmann (February 12, 1884 – December 27, 1950) was a German painter, draftsman, printmaker, sculptor, and writer. Although he is classified as an Expressionist artist, he rejected both the term and the movement. In the 1920s ...
,
Lovis Corinth Lovis Corinth (21 July 1858 – 17 July 1925) was a German artist and writer whose mature work as a painter and printmaker realized a synthesis of impressionism and expressionism. Corinth studied in Paris and Munich, joined the Berlin Sec ...
,
James Ensor James Sidney Edouard, Baron Ensor (13 April 1860 – 19 November 1949) was a Belgian painter and printmaker, an important influence on expressionism and surrealism who lived in Ostend for most of his life. He was associated with the artistic g ...
,
Alfred Kubin Alfred Leopold Isidor Kubin (10 April 1877 – 20 August 1959) was an Austrian printmaker, illustrator, and occasional writer. Kubin is considered an important representative of Symbolism and Expressionism. Biography Kubin was born in Bohemia ...
, Fernand Khnopff, Max Klinger, Edvard Munch and others. ''
The Blue Angel ''The Blue Angel'' (german: Der blaue Engel) is a 1930 German musical comedy-drama film directed by Josef von Sternberg, and starring Marlene Dietrich, Emil Jannings and Kurt Gerron. Written by Carl Zuckmayer, Karl Vollmöller and Rober ...
'' largely was inspired by a figure by Rops that impressed director Josef von Sternberg.


Gallery II: prints and book illustrations

File:Rops - Die Wracks - 1868.jpeg, Frontispiece for ''Les Épaves'' by Baudelaire (1868) etching (16 x 13,3 cm) Musée Félicien Rops, Namur File:Peladan, frontispiece for, The Supreme Vice (1884) etching and aquatint (11.75 x 7.78 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tiff, Frontispiece for ''The Supreme Vice'' by Peladan (1884) etching and aquatint (11.75 x 7.78 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Péladan, frontispiece for, A Heart Lost (1888) soft-ground etching (16.67 x 10.8 cm) Los Angeles County Museum.tiff, Frontispiece for ''A Heart Lost'' by Peladan (1888) soft-ground etching (16.67 x 10.8 cm) Los Angeles County Museum File:Felicien Rops, The Lyre (detail) (1895) soft-ground and drypoint (22.8 x 15.7 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, Frontispiece for ''Poésies'' by Mallarmé, ''The Lyre'' (1895) etching & drypoint (23 x 16 cm) L.A. Co. Museum File:Felicien Rops, Parallelism (ca. 1896) heliogravure (33.5 × 21.2 mm) The Art Institute of Chicago.jpg, Frontispiece for ''Chair'' 'Flesh''by Verlaine, ''Parallelism'' (ca. 1896) heliogravure (33.5 × 21.2 mm) The Art Institute of Chicago File:20110526222429!Félicien Rops - Sainte-Thérèse.png, Sainte-Thérèse (no date) heliogravure (15 x 11 cm) various locations. File:Felicien Rops, Parisian Masks (no date) heliogravure (29.2 x 17.2 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta.jpg, ''Parisian Masks'' (no date) heliogravure (29.2 x 17.2 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta File:Felicien Rops, Holocauste, Naturalia Non Sunt Turpia (What is natural is not dirty) (1895) heliogravure retouched with drypoint (21.6 x 15.2 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta.jpg, ''Holocauste, Naturalia Non Sunt Turpia'' (''What is natural is not dirty'') (1895) heliogravure, drypoint (21.6 x 15.2 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta File:Felicien Rops, Sentimental Initiation (1887) heliogravure, Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta.jpg, ''Sentimental Initiation'' (1887) heliogravure, Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta File:Félicien Rops - Tanzender Tod.jpeg, ''The Dance of Death'' (ca. 1865) etching (55 x 37 cm) File:Felicien Rops, Flemish Madness (no date) aquatint (12.07 x 9.53 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, ''Flemish Madness'' (no date) aquatint (12.07 x 9.53 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Japanese Salamander and Beetle (no date) aquatint (9.21 x 6.67 cm) Los Angeles County Museum.tif, Japanese Salamander and Beetle (no date) aquatint (9.21 x 6.67 cm) Los Angeles County Museum File:Felicien Rops, The Cat, Amica Non Serva, Friend Not Servant ( no date) etching (8.26 x 5.87 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, ''The Cat'' 'Amica Non Serva, Friend Not Servant''(no date) etching (8.26 x 5.87 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Separated or Simian Spring (no date) etching with aquatint (6.51 x 9.68 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, Separated or Simian Spring (no date) etching with aquatint (6.51 x 9.68 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, The Absinthe Drinker (1853–1898) heliogravure (335 × 225 mm) Art Institute of Chicago.jpg, ''The Absinthe Drinker'' (1853–1898) heliogravure (335 × 225 mm) Art Institute of Chicago File:Felicien Rops, Mam'zelle Gavroche and Erotic Poetry (1879) heliogravure (24 x 18 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta.jpg, Mam'zelle Gavroche and Erotic Poetry (1879) heliogravure (24 x 18 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta File:Felicien Rops, Celle qui fait 'Celle qui lit Musset' (1879) heliogravure (24.61 x 15.24 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, ''Celle qui fait 'Celle qui lit Musset'' (1879) heliogravure (24.61 x 15.24 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Shaker Pianist (1888) etching (16.99 x 11.75 cm) ) Los Angeles County Museum of Art II.tif, ''A Shaker Pianist'' (1888) etching (16.99 x 11.75 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Strike, The Charcoal (1876) etching, drypoint (19.8 x 15.2 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta.jpg, ''The Strike'' (1876) etching, drypoint (19.8 x 15.2 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta File:Felicien Rops, Head of Zealander (1886) soft-ground etching (19.69 x 23.65 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, ''Head of Zealander'' (1886) soft-ground etching (19.69 x 23.65 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Old Kate (1895) heliogravure & roulette (25.9 x 19.5 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta.jpg, ''Old Kate'' (1895) heliogravure & roulette (25.9 x 19.5 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta File:Félicien Rops (1833-1898) Een begrafenis in het Waalse land (1863) litho - Musée Félicien Rops Namen 23-03-2018 10-17-45.JPG, ''Funeral in the Walloon Country'' (1863) lithograph, Musée Félicien Rops, Namen, Belgium File:Felicien Rops, Jean Brouette (1875) etching (19.84 x 12.86 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tiff, Jean Brouette (1875) etching (19.84 x 12.86 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Parable of the Sower (no date) heliogravure, drypoint (16.3 x 11.4 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta.jpg, ''Parable of the Sower'' (no date) heliogravure, drypoint (16.3 x 11.4 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta File:Felicien Rops, The Kitchen of the Artists' Inn, in Anseremme (no date) etching (19.05 x 13.81 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, The Kitchen of the Artists' Inn, in Anseremme (no date) etching (19.05 x 13.81 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art


''Les Sataniques'' and ''Les Diaboliques''

As early as 1896, when a special tribute edition of the literary journal
La Plume ''La Plume'' was a French bi-monthly literary and artistic review. The magazine was set up in 1889 by Léon Deschamps, who edited it for ten years and was succeeded as editor by Karl Boès from 1899 to 1914. Its offices were at number 31 rue Bo ...
(No. 172, 15 June) was published honoring Rops, the illustrations he produced for d'Aurevilly's ''Les Diaboliques'' as well as an earlier series, ''Les Sataniques'' were often singled out and "placed at the top of the ropsian pantheon" and considered the "paradigm of the Ropsian work".Alric Delaporte (2014) Les Diaboliques de Félicien Rops. Master Thesis, University of Paris, Panthéon-Sorbonne. https://hicsa.univ-paris1.fr/documents/file/JE%20Meneux%20Master%202014/3-Delaporte-Diaboliques%20Rops.pdf Subsequent critics, historians, as well as his admirers among the general public have consistently regarded these prints as among the best examples of his illustrative oeuvre. Art historian Robert L. Delevoy wrote "His etchings for ''Les Diaboliques'' by
Barbey d'Aurevilly Jules-Amédée Barbey d'Aurevilly (2 November 1808 – 23 April 1889) was a French novelist and short story writer. He specialised in mystery tales that explored hidden motivation and hinted at evil without being explicitly concerned with anythin ...
are regarded as some of the best illustrative work ever done." ''Les Sataniques'' (''The Satanic'') was a series of his own initiative, independent of his book illustrations and literary works. Dating from about 1882, there are a number of closely related drawings, watercolors, sketches, and other mixed media pieces, as well as prints in various states of development. He had hoped to do a large series and eventually publish them in the form of a book, but this never came to fruition. Ultimately a set of five
heliogravure Photogravure (in French ''héliogravure'') is a process for printing photographs, also sometimes used for reproductive intaglio printmaking. It is a photo-mechanical process whereby a copper plate is grained (adding a pattern to the plate) an ...
s (based on five original drawings) were published, including: ''Satan semant l'ivraie'' (''Satan Sowing Tare''), ''L'enlèvement'' (''The Abduction''), ''Le Calvaire'' (''The Calvary''), ''L'idole'' (''The Idol''), and ''Le Sacrifice'' (''The Sacrifice''). The frontispiece of the cycle, ''Satan Sowing Tare'', which appeared in several versions, was based on the Biblical ''
Parable of the Tares The Parable of the Tares or Weeds (KJV: ''tares'', WNT: ''darnel'', DRB: ''cockle'') is a parable of Jesus which appears in . The parable relates how servants eager to pull up weeds were warned that in so doing they would root out the wheat as w ...
'' which appears in Matthew 13:24-13:30. This series ranks among the more familiar and discussed images of his work. There is nothing in the dozens of references below to suggest that Rops was actively involved or a believer in Satanism, and his use of this subject was only symbolic or metaphoric.


Gallery III: ''Les Sataniques''

File:Rops - Satan säht die Hexenbrut.jpeg, ''Satan Sowing Tares'' (1882) chromolithograph (30.4 x 21 cm) Musèe Félicien Rops File:Felicien Rops, Satan Sowing Tare (18) etching, aquatint (27.7 x 20.9 cm) National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC.jpg, ''Satan Sowing Tare'' (1882) etching, aquatint (27.7 x 20.9 cm) National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC File:Felicien Rops, The Abduction (1882) heliogravure ( 27.8 x 20 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta.jpg, ''The Abduction'' (1882) heliogravure (27.8 x 20 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta File:Felicien Rops, Le Calvaire (1882) heliogravure (ca. 27 x 20 cm) Museum De Reede.jpg, ''Le Calvaire'' (1882) heliogravure (ca. 27 x 20 cm) Museum De Reede, Antwerp File:Felicien Rops, L'idole (1882) heliogravure (27.6 x 20 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta.jpg, ''The Idol'' (1882) heliogravure (27.6 x 20 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta File:Felicien Rops, The Sacrifice (ca. 1882) soft ground etching, reproduced in heliogravure (27.6 x 20.3 cm) Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.jpg, ''The Sacrifice'' (ca. 1882) soft ground etching, reproduced in heliogravure (27.6 x 20.3 cm) Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York File:Felicien Rops, Satan throwing to the world the food she deserves (no date) soft-ground etching (15.88 × 31.75 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, ''Satan Throwing to the World the Food She Deserves'' (no date) soft-ground etching (15.88 × 31.75 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Monsters or Genesis, soft-ground etching (18.89 x 25.56 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, ''Genesis'' from ''Les Sataniques'' (ca. 1882) soft-ground etching (18.89 x 25.56 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Satan créant les monstres, fromLes Sataniques (no date) soft-ground etching (13.1 x 19.6 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, ''Satan Creating the Monsters'' from ''Les Sataniques'' (no date) soft-ground etching (13.1 x 19.6 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art '' Les Diaboliques'' (''The She-Devils'') is a collection of six short stories by
Jules Barbey d'Aurevilly Jules-Amédée Barbey d'Aurevilly (2 November 1808 – 23 April 1889) was a French novelist and short story writer. He specialised in mystery tales that explored hidden motivation and hinted at evil without being explicitly concerned with anythin ...
that was first published in 1874. Each story is centered around a bored, bourgeois woman, usually involved in a crime of violent depravity or act of revenge. The book was an instant success and quickly sold out. The uproar caught the attention of the Public Prosecutor, the book was banned, the author and publisher were charged with insulting public morality, and set to be put on trial. However, with the aid of
Léon Gambetta Léon Gambetta (; 2 April 1838 – 31 December 1882) was a French lawyer and republican politician who proclaimed the French Third Republic in 1870 and played a prominent role in its early government. Early life and education Born in Cahors, Ga ...
, a sympathetic statesman, a trial was avoided. Rops did not illustrate the first edition. Laws granting the freedom of the press in France were passed on 29 July 1881 and a second edition of the book was planned by the publisher, Alphonse Lemerre, who thought Rops was ideally suited to illustrate the new edition. Rops provided Lemerre with designs for the illustrations in the form of drawings, but the actual production of the etchings is believed to have been delegated to others. The first set of etchings is referred to as the "Lemerre format", or small boards
lates ''Lates'' is a genus of freshwater and euryhaline lates perches belonging to the family Latidae. The generic name is also used as a common name, lates, for many of the species. All species are predatory, and the Nile perch (''L. niloticus''), in ...
and likely date from 1882 when the second edition of the book was published. However Delaporte, in his thesis, discuses a myriad of inconsistency involving the production and dates of the small etchings and suggest they could have appeared ca. 1882–1886.Nicolas Valazza (with S. N. Rosenberg, L. Lerme & H. (2019) Banned Books and Prints in Europe and the United States, 17th–20th Centuries. Works from the Lilly Library and the Kinsey Institute Collections. Indiana University Bloomington https://bannedbooks.indiana.edu/exhibits/show/bannedbooks/prose--france--19th-century Rops wrote in a letter to Jean-François Taelemans (8 April 1886) that he was unsatisfied and the "small boards do not say anything". He began a second set based on the original drawings using a
heliogravure Photogravure (in French ''héliogravure'') is a process for printing photographs, also sometimes used for reproductive intaglio printmaking. It is a photo-mechanical process whereby a copper plate is grained (adding a pattern to the plate) an ...
technique, which he then reworked by hand with aquatint, soft-ground varnish, drypoint, etc. The heliogravure prints gave Rops a greater ability to exhibit subtleties and nuances of light and shadow in the dark, nocturnal images. Apparently ''La Vengeance d'une Femme'' (''The Vengeance of a Woman'') was not reproduced in the heliogravure set. The second, heliogravure set, is referred to as the large boards. Like the small boards, the history of the production and dates of the large boards involve many inconsistencies, contradictions, and other issues, but date from ca.1887-1893. The ''Les Diaboliques'' illustrations includes nine prints: the frontispiece ''Le Sphinx'' (T''he Sphinx''); a prescript ''La Prostitution et la folie dominant le monde'' (''Prostitution and Madness Rule the World''); an illustration for each chapter, ''Le Rideau Cramoisi'' (''The Crimson Curtain''); ''Le plus bel amour de Don Juan'' (''The Greatest Love of Don Juan''); ''Le bonheur le dans le crime'' (''Happiness in Crime''); ''À un dîner d'athées'' (''At a Dinner of Atheists''); ''Le Dessous de Cartes d'une Partie de Whist'' (''Beneath the Cards in a Game of Whist''); ''La Vengeance d'une Femme'' (''The Vengeance of a Woman''); and a postscript ''La Femme et la folie dominant le monde'' (''Woman & Madness Rule the World''). The print of ''The Greatest Love of Don Juan'' bears a striking similarity to Edvard Munch's famous painting ''
Puberty Puberty is the process of physical changes through which a child's body matures into an adult body capable of sexual reproduction. It is initiated by hormonal signals from the brain to the gonads: the ovaries in a girl, the testes in a bo ...
'' painted in 1894. As early as 1894, with the first publication ever devoted to Munch, comparisons have been made. Munch denied having been influenced by Rops's etching, and said his painting was a copy of another painting he had made in the mid 1880s and "that this earlier version had been lost in a studio fire."Arne Eggum (1978) Edvard Munch: Symbols and Images. National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C. 264 pp. Nonetheless, art critics and historians have consistently noted the similarities.Prelinger, Elizabeth and Michael Parke-Taylor(1996). The Symbolist Prints of Edvard Munch. Yale University Press, New Haven and London, 236 pp.


Gallery IV:''Les Diaboliques''

File:Felicien Rops, Barbey d'Aurevilly (no date) hand-colored lithograph (27.31 x 22.86 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tiff, ''Caricature of Barbey d'Aurevilly'' (no date) hand-colored lithograph (27.31 x 22.86 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Diaboliques.jpg, ''The Sphinx'', illustration for '' Les Diaboliques'' by
Jules Barbey d'Aurevilly Jules-Amédée Barbey d'Aurevilly (2 November 1808 – 23 April 1889) was a French novelist and short story writer. He specialised in mystery tales that explored hidden motivation and hinted at evil without being explicitly concerned with anythin ...
(1879) pencil & watercolor (25 x 18 cm) Brussels File:Felicien Roips, Le Sphinx (no date) soft-ground etching (11.75 x 7.94 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tiff, ''The Sphinx'' (ca.1887-1893) heliogravure, soft-ground etching (11.75 x 7.94 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Prostitution and Madness Rule the World ( no date) soft-ground etching (24.45 x 16.67 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tiff, ''Prostitution and Madness Rule the World'' (ca.1887-1893) heliogravure, soft-ground etching (24 x 16 cm) L.A. County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, The Crimson Curtain (no date) heliogravure with aquatint and soft varnish (237 × 165 mm) Art Institute of Chicago II.jpg, ''The Crimson Curtain'' (ca. 1887–93) heliogravure, aquatint and soft varnish (23.7 × 16.5 cm) Art Institute of Chicago File:Felicien Rops, The Greatest Love of Don Juan (ca. 1886) etching, drypoint, aquatinte (23.5 x 16.2 cm) Royal Library of Belgium.jpg, ''The Greatest Love of Don Juan'' (ca. 1887–93) heliogravure, etching, drypoint, aquatinte (23.5 x 16.2 cm) Royal Library of Belgium File:Felicien Rops, Happiness in Crime (after 1874) etching, dry point, aquatint (23.8 x 16.5 cm) Royal Library of Belgium.jpg, ''Happiness in Crime'' (ca. 1887–93) heliogravure, etching, dry point, aquatint (23.8 x 16.5 cm) Royal Library of Belgium File:Felicien Rops, At a Dinner of Atheists (after 1874) heliogravure, aquatint, soft-ground varnish (24.8 x 16.6 cm) Royal Library of Belgium.jpg, ''At a Dinner of Atheists'' (ca. 1887–93) heliogravure, aquatint, soft-ground varnish (24.8 x 16.6 cm) Royal Library of Belgium File:Felicien Rops, Beneath the Cards in a Game of Whist (1886) heliogravure (9.05 x 6.03 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, ''Beneath the Cards in a Game of Whist'' (ca. 1887–93) heliogravure (24.2 x 16.3 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, The Vengeance of a Woman (ca. 1882-1886) etching (12.38 x 9.05 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, ''The Vengeance of a Woman'' (c. 1882–1886) etching (12.38 x 9.05 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicin Rops, Woman & Madness Rule the World (1886) heliogravure (9.05 x 6.03 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, ''Woman & Madness Rule the World'' (ca. 1887–93) heliogravure (24.2 x 16.3 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Happiness in Crime (1882) etching (12.38 x 9.05 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.jpg, ''Happiness in Crime'' (1882) etching (12.38 x 9.05 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, At a Dinner of Atheists, Small boards (1882-86) etching (12.38 x 8.73 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, ''At a Dinner of Atheists'', (1882–86) etching (12.38 x 8.73 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Beneath the Cards in a Game of Whist (ca. 1882-1886) etching (12.38 x 9.05 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tif, ''Beneath the Cards in a Game of Whist'' (ca. 1882–1886) etching (12.38 x 9.05 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art


Cartoons and caricatures

Félicien Rops was a pioneer and considered by many as the starting point for
Belgian Comics Belgian comics are a distinct subgroup in the comics history, and played a major role in the development of European comics, alongside France with whom they share a long common history. While the comics in the two major language groups and regio ...
. He was the first Belgian cartoonist to produce text comics, a comic strip based on a recurring character, satirical, and erotic comics. Rops began publishing comics in student magazines including ''Le Crocodile'' and ''Le Diable au Salon'' while still in school in the 1850s. He sometimes published using pseudonyms, including ''Spor'', ''Risette'', ''Graffin'', ''Cham-Loth'', and ''Croque-tout''. With friends he co-founded a weekly artistic and literary satirical review ''The Uylenspiegel'' in 1856, which he contributed to regularly until its demise 1862. Examples of the early use of text comics and reoccurring characters include ''Les époux Van-Blague'', the comedic experiences of a couple published in ''Le Crocodile'' (e.g. issue #40, 20 November 1853) and a series of thematically unified, but otherwise unrelated humorous episodes at the Antwerp Zoo ''Promenade au Jardin Zoologique''. One cartoon in particular, 'La Médaille de Waterloo' (1858), depicting a decrepit, peg legged likeness of
Napoléon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
on a medal, guarded by his devotee's from a hoard of skeletons rising from the dead, (in criticism of those who held Napoléon in honor with seemingly no regard for the havoc and loss of life that he had brought to Europe) caused an outrage in France and Belgium. However, ultimately this only served to further Rops notoriety. Rops published significantly fewer comics as his career as an illustrator of books progressed but, he produced occasional comics, caricatures, even advertisements, throughout his life.


Gallery V: cartoons and caricatures

File:The White Slave - The Casinos (Uylenspiegel, No. 11, 13 Apr. 1856) lithograph (30.16 x 22.7 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tiff, ''The White Slave: The Casinos'' (Uylenspiegel, No. 11, 13 Apr. 1856) lithograph (30.16 x 22.7 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Galerie d'Uylenspiegel, Eduoard (Uylenspiegel, no. 5, 2 March 1856) lithograph (22.54 x 16.03 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tiff, ''Galerie d'Uylenspiegel, Eduoard'' (Uylenspiegel, no. 5, 2 March 1856) lithograph (22.54 x 16.03 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Jardin Zoologique (Uylenspiegel, no. 20, 15 June 1856) lithograph (20.32 x 17.15 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tiff, ''Jardin Zoologique'' (Uylenspiegel, no. 20, 15 June 1856) lithograph (20.32 x 17.15 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Jardin Zoologique (Uylenspiegel, no. 28, 9 August 1857) lithograph) (28.58 x 20.64 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tiff, ''Jardin Zoologique'' (Uylenspiegel, no. 28, 9 August 1857) lithograph) (28.58 x 20.64 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Louis-Joseph-Boniface Defre LACMA M.80.277.36.jpg, Louis Defré (aka Maurice Voituron & Joseph Boniface), burgomaster of
Uccle Uccle () or Ukkel () is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. In common with all of Brussels' municipalities, it is legally bilingual (French–Dutch). It is generally considered an affluent area of the city an ...
(1858) lithograph (28.58 x 19.53 cm) L.A. County Museum. File:Felicien Rops, Médaille de Waterloo (1858) lithograph (58.2 x 43.6 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta.jpg, ''Médaille de Waterloo'' (1858) lithograph (58.2 x 43.6 cm) Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University, Atlanta File:Felicien Rops, Political Comedy (1859) lithograph (23.65 x 18.89 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art of Art.tiff, ''Political Comedy'' (1859) lithograph (23.65 x 18.89 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art of Art File:Felicien Rops, Constitutional Chronicles (no date) lithograph (23.65 x 20 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tiff, ''Constitutional Chronicles'' (no date) lithograph (23.65 x 20 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, The Last Incarnation of Vautrin (Uylenspiegel, No. 39, 2 Nov. 1862) lithograph (29.53 x 22.07 cm) Los Angeles County Museum.tiff, ''The Last Incarnation of Vautrin'' (Uylenspiegel, No. 39, 2 Nov. 1862) lithograph (29.53 x 22.07 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Rops Varsovie.jpeg, ''Order Reigns in Warsaw'' (1863) lithograph (36.4 x 29.7) File:Rops, The Right to Rest, The Right to Work (no date) etching (ca. 7.94 x 10.6 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.jpg, ''The Right to Rest, The Right to Work'' (ca. 1868) etching (ca. 7.94 x 10.6 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Misanthropie! (1872) etching on Japan paper (19.37 x 15.08 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tiff, ''Misanthropie!'' (1872) etching on Japan paper (19.37 x 15.08 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Parisian Life (1876 )wood engraving (34.7 x 27.15 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art.tiff, ''Parisian Life'' (1876) wood engraving (34.7 x 27.15 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art File:Felicien Rops, Duluc Sisters, Dresses (no date) etching (7.62 x 5.56 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art I.jpg, ''Duluc Sisters, Dresses'' (no date) etching (7.62 x 5.56 cm) Los Angeles County Museum of Art I


References


Further reading

* P. & V. Berko, "Dictionary of Belgian painters born between 1750 & 1875", Knokke 1981, p. 565–566. * P. & V. Berko, "19th Century European Virtuoso Painters", Knokke 2011, p. 513, illustrations p. 145.


External links


The Musée Félicien Rops in Namur
(English, French)

* * * * Blakeley, H. R. (2015) Beyond Eros: Works by Félicien Rops in the Michael C. Carlos Museum. Carlos Museum and Emory's Center for Digital Scholarship, Emory University, Atlanta. Accessed 23 September 201
Beyond Eros: Works by Félicien Rops in the Michael C. Carlos Museum · Félicien Rops
* Félicien Rops Letters

* Musée Félicien Rops [Félicien Rops Museum
Musée Félicien Rops – Musée d'Art du 19e – à Namur
* Bienvenue au château de Thozée!
Welcome to Château de Thozée
(Accessed 30 December 2019) * Church of Saint-Loup at Namur. Wikimedia Commons, Category
Église Saint-Loup, Namur
(Accessed 30 December 2019) {{DEFAULTSORT:Rops, Felicien 1833 births 1898 deaths People from Namur (city) Belgian illustrators Belgian printmakers Belgian Symbolist painters Belgian editorial cartoonists Belgian caricaturists Belgian comics artists Belgian humorists Walloon people Belgian Freemasons Belgian erotic artists Belgian critics of Christianity 19th-century Belgian painters Belgian male painters 19th-century Belgian male artists