Eugèn Verboeckhoven (1799-1881)

Photograph of a full length portrait of Eugèn Verboeckhoven standing, facing three-quarters to the left. He looks towards the camera. He poses with his right hand on the back of an upholstered chair and his left hand on his hip. There is a top hat placed on the seat of the chair.

Eugen Joseph Verboeckhoven (1799-1881) studied sculpture and painting with his father Bartholomew. During his lifetime his romantic pictures of animals earned him an international reputation, and were particularly well received in the USA and England, where his work is amply represented. His careful technique produced a velvety finish and surfaces which seem to be bathed in a golden light. As a young man he travelled to London and studied the big cats at the Royal Menagerie. In addition to being a member of the academies in Belgium, Antwerp, and St Petersburg, he was awarded the highest honours, including the Cross of the Légion d'Honneur, and the Order of Leopold of Belgium.