De bekoring van Christus 1888

James Ensor created this etching, titled "The Temptation of Christ," in 1888, amid a rapidly changing Belgium. Ensor, a rebel against academic and societal norms, often explored themes of alienation and critique. In this image, the divine is juxtaposed with a detailed cityscape, challenging traditional religious iconography. The figure of Christ, almost ghost-like, seems both part of and detached from the urban sprawl below. Ensor, who spent most of his life in Ostend, was keenly aware of the societal shifts that came with modernization. His art was a means to represent the tension between the spiritual and the material. The dense urban landscape might suggest the earthly temptations Christ faces, reflecting a society obsessed with progress, industry, and commerce. Ultimately, Ensor’s vision forces us to question where true salvation lies, within the structures of our making, or in the individual's struggle against them.