Wiertz Museum

Dedicated to the Belgian Romantic painter, sculptor, lithographer, and writer Antoine Wiertz (1806-1865), this museum houses a collection of his work in what was once his home and studio.

Known for his vast, oil-on-canvas paintings that blended romanticism and horror, Wiertz cut a controversial figure amongst his contemporaries. Charles Baudelaire described him as “that infamous poseur…who does not know how to draw,” but he attracted the support of the Belgian government, who were then keen to promote a national artistic identity.

Whether you experience his art as breathtaking or bombastic, there is no denying that Weirtz was a highly unusual painter who was arguably ahead of his time. Modern art critics see his works as foreshadowing Belgian surrealism, the movement most associated with René Magritte.