The son of a wealthy textile manufacturer, Félicien Joseph Victor Rops was educated by private tutors before moving to the Jesuit College in his Belgian hometown of Namur. Even at a young age, he was a talented draftsman who also liked to caricature his teachers. Whether the unflattering caricatures were the reason why he was expelled from the Jesuit College in 1849? We can only speculate about that. In any case, he transferred to the Royal Athenaeum and soon enrolled at the Académie des Beaux-Arts. Much to the annoyance of his uncle, who had taken over Félicien's guardianship after his father's death. In the end, the nephew learned, among other things, how to draw nudes at the Académie. The young Rops, however, did not let his uncle's disapproval stop him from pursuing his artistic career. He enrolled at the University of Brussels. There he also became a member of the "Club des Crocodiles," which published its own magazine for which he produced drawings and biting caricatures. Together with Charles de Coster, he also founded the magazine "Uylenspiegel". The caricatures he contributed here were also sold as offprints and gained notoriety as a result. After his marriage to Charlotte Polet de Faveaux, who soon gave birth to a son, he had to severely limit his involvement with the publication and finally end it. Charlotte was the daughter of the president of the court, and it was simply not appropriate for his husband to work as a caricaturist. Without him, the magazine then also slowly went.
Nevertheless, he remained friends with Charles de Coster and worked for him as an illustrator. Among other things, he provided the illustrations for his works "Legéndes flamandes" or "La Légende de Uylenspiegel". It was also during this time that he met the publisher Auguste Poulet-Malassis. He commissioned him to illustrate 34 works, including Beaudelaire's poems. As a result, Rops soon became one of the best-paid illustrators in Paris and found himself among the most important authors of the time. In the wake of these bohemian celebrities were the Duluc sisters, Léontine and Aurélie, fashion designers by trade. Félicien fell madly in love - with both ladies. His wife refused to divorce him, but that did not prevent him from living with the sisters and fathering offspring. His daughter Claire from the relationship with Léontine later became the wife of the Belgian writer Eugène Demolder.
As much as Rops enjoyed the life and pleasures of the French capital in his younger years, he appreciated tranquility in his final years. He bought an estate south of Paris and grew roses there. Here, too, Léontine and Aurélie were by his side. They were also the ones who nursed him when he suffered eye damage from an accident with chemicals. Fortunately, it did not lead to blindness, so Félicien Joseph Victor Rops could draw until his death.
The son of a wealthy textile manufacturer, Félicien Joseph Victor Rops was educated by private tutors before moving to the Jesuit College in his Belgian hometown of Namur. Even at a young age, he was a talented draftsman who also liked to caricature his teachers. Whether the unflattering caricatures were the reason why he was expelled from the Jesuit College in 1849? We can only speculate about that. In any case, he transferred to the Royal Athenaeum and soon enrolled at the Académie des Beaux-Arts. Much to the annoyance of his uncle, who had taken over Félicien's guardianship after his father's death. In the end, the nephew learned, among other things, how to draw nudes at the Académie. The young Rops, however, did not let his uncle's disapproval stop him from pursuing his artistic career. He enrolled at the University of Brussels. There he also became a member of the "Club des Crocodiles," which published its own magazine for which he produced drawings and biting caricatures. Together with Charles de Coster, he also founded the magazine "Uylenspiegel". The caricatures he contributed here were also sold as offprints and gained notoriety as a result. After his marriage to Charlotte Polet de Faveaux, who soon gave birth to a son, he had to severely limit his involvement with the publication and finally end it. Charlotte was the daughter of the president of the court, and it was simply not appropriate for his husband to work as a caricaturist. Without him, the magazine then also slowly went.
Nevertheless, he remained friends with Charles de Coster and worked for him as an illustrator. Among other things, he provided the illustrations for his works "Legéndes flamandes" or "La Légende de Uylenspiegel". It was also during this time that he met the publisher Auguste Poulet-Malassis. He commissioned him to illustrate 34 works, including Beaudelaire's poems. As a result, Rops soon became one of the best-paid illustrators in Paris and found himself among the most important authors of the time. In the wake of these bohemian celebrities were the Duluc sisters, Léontine and Aurélie, fashion designers by trade. Félicien fell madly in love - with both ladies. His wife refused to divorce him, but that did not prevent him from living with the sisters and fathering offspring. His daughter Claire from the relationship with Léontine later became the wife of the Belgian writer Eugène Demolder.
As much as Rops enjoyed the life and pleasures of the French capital in his younger years, he appreciated tranquility in his final years. He bought an estate south of Paris and grew roses there. Here, too, Léontine and Aurélie were by his side. They were also the ones who nursed him when he suffered eye damage from an accident with chemicals. Fortunately, it did not lead to blindness, so Félicien Joseph Victor Rops could draw until his death.
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