Procession en Flandres II 1933

Felix Labisse painted “Procession en Flandres II” with oil on canvas, and the smooth finish, precise lines and clean colours are very particular. You can really see how the act of painting has allowed him to make something incredibly surreal. I find myself completely drawn in by the surface, which seems so flat and even, but when you look closer, you can sense the hand of the artist and see faint details like the texture of the cloth. What really stands out is how the people, who are set against such an unrealistic background, are rendered with such a careful, delicate touch. The whole piece vibrates with something I can’t quite put my finger on, which is part of what I like about it. Labisse’s work reminds me a little of James Ensor; both artists embrace the weird, both are Belgian and both give us a real sense of the carnivalesque. Art is always about artists responding to what came before.