émile Deckers (1885–1968), Circa 1925–1930, Pastel Of A Beautiful Young Kabyle Woman

Émile Deckers 1885–1968, painted in Algiers

** It’s truly beautiful—the colors are vibrant, and there are no water stains. From an old Jewish-Moroccan collection in Tangier

*** Will be on display tomorrow at “Sablon Antiques Center,” 39 Place du Grand Sablon, 1000 Brussels

Biography: Émile Deckers trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in Liège, then in Paris as a student of Carolus Duran and Évariste Carpentier. He won first prize in anatomy and first prize in painting in 1904, received a medal from the Belgian government in 1904 (for the advanced painting competition from a live model in 1906), and was awarded the Donnay Prize (a travel grant). At the age of twenty-one, he won first prize in historical composition, and in 1911 he was appointed a member of the jury of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts. He served on the front lines throughout World War I and was made a Knight of the Order of the Crown, recipient of the Belgian Victory Medal, and the Commemorative Medal for the Defense of Liège.

He settled in Algiers in 1921 and made a name for himself there as an “Orientalist” painter—a well-deserved reputation that brought him fame.

He painted, in particular, local genre scenes, notably portraits of young Kabyles, Tuaregs, and members of tribes from the south and the Atlas Mountains. His style was similar to that of his predecessor Édouard Herzig, but in oil on canvas rather than gouache on paper. He created large-format portraits, often in three or more panels (his “trademark”), which remain highly sought after by collectors today. Beginning in 1930, he divided his time between Algiers and his native Belgium during the summer. In 1940 || he settled in the Belgian Congo, which he did not leave until 1950.

A Belgian citizen, he remained in Algiers after June 1962 and did not leave the city until 1966. He returned to Belgium, settling in Verviers

***** Dimensions without frame: 53 cm x 42 cm; dimensions with frame: 63 cm x 71 cm
****** Medium: pastel on beige paper
******* Frame: superb gilded wooden frame from “Schleipper”