Interior or A Loving Couple

Interior, sometimes also called A Loving Couple, is without doubt a high point in Leon De Smet’s oeuvre, effectively expressing the tranquil poetry that is the feature of his work. Here one notes the refined range of colours, the impressionistic touch and the well-balanced composition with which the artist creates an atmospheric rendering of space and light. As was often…

Interior, sometimes also called A Loving Couple, is without doubt a high point in Leon De Smet’s oeuvre, effectively expressing the tranquil poetry that is the feature of his work. Here one notes the refined range of colours, the impressionistic touch and the well-balanced composition with which the artist creates an atmospheric rendering of space and light. As was often the case, De Smet integrated two of his own previous paintings into Interior. George Minne is also a prominent presence, in the form of The Small Relic-Bearer, one of his best-known works, which here stands on the mantelpiece and also turns up in other paintings by De Smet.