Xavier De Cock

(1818-1896)

Kermesse in Flanders (Sint-Denijs-Westrem)

1857
Oil on canvas
50 x 74 cm (19 ³/₄ x 29 ¹/₈ inches)
Signed and dated lower right: Xavier De Cock / 1857
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Literature
- Catalogue de la vente des tableaux du peintre renommé Xavier De Cock, veilingcatalogus (Gent: Van Melle, 1906), cat.no. 20.
- Van Hoorde, J., De gebroeders Xavier en César De Cock (Gent: Vanderpoorten, 1897), p. 39.
- Moors, L., "Xavier De Cock 1818-1896. Leven en werk. Proeve van catalogus van zijn schilderkundig oeuvre. Album," masterproef (Gent: UGent, 1987), afb. 29 (ill.).
- Moors, L., "Xavier De Cock 1818-1896. Leven en werk. Proeve van catalogus van zijn schilderkundig oeuvre," masterproef (Gent: UGent, 1987), 81, 128, no. 9 (afb. 29).
- Van Doorne, V. & L. Moors, Retrospectieve tentoonstelling Xavier De Cock, César De Cock, Gustaaf Den Duyts, tent.cat. (Deinze: MuDeL, 1988), 10, 19, 47, afb. 7 (ill.).
Exhibitions
- 1988, Deinze MuDeL,  Retrospectieve tentoonstelling Xavier De Cock, César De Cock, Gustaaf Den Duyts, cat.no. 7.
Provenance
- Xavier De Cock, thence by descent to the last owner.
Description
In 1857 the De Cock brothers took part in the Paris Salon for the first time and with success. Xavier wins a gold medal for his painting Cows at the Watering Place. In 1857 Xavier De Cock leaves his brother César in Normandy to return to Flanders. Around this time he met Albijn Van den Abeele, with whom he would remain friends throughout his life.
During the summers, Xavier would henceforth stay in Sint-Denijs-Westrem, only to go to Paris in the winter months. During his stay in the municipality, he painted the 'leutige kermis' of this village. It is a witty tableau on which country folk who go to the fair are depicted in their peculiar clothing 'spicy'. In the foreground, the youth is dancing. To the right of the centre is a couple in love who are moving away from the crowd and the dancing.
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Kermesse in Flanders (Sint-Denijs-Westrem)