FLORENT

JOSEPH

See also:

• MARIE

MARIE

See also:

• FLORENT JOSEPH MARIE WILLEMS (1823–1905)
• WILLEMS, JEAN FRANCOIS (1793-'t846)

WILLEMS (1823–1905)  , Belgian painter, was born at Liege on the 8th of January 1823 . ' He had no regular tuition in painting, but learnt by copying and restoring old pictures at Malines, where he lived from 1832 . He made his debut at the Brussels Salon in 1842 with a " Music Party " and an "Interior of a 17th-century Guard-room" in the style of Terburg and Metsu . Soon afterwards he settled in Paris, where his pictures enjoyed considerable popularity under the second empire . Among his most famous works may be mentioned " The Wedding Dress " (Brussels Gallery), " La Fete des grands-parents" (Brussels Gallery), " Le Baise-main " (Mme . Cardon's collection, Brussels), " Farewell " (Willems coll., Brussels), " The Arches of the Peace " (Delahaye coll., Antwerp) and " The Widow " (engraved by Desvachez) . He died at Neuilly-sur-Seine on the 23rd of October 1905 .