Fernand Edmond Jean Marie Khnopff (September 12, 1858 in Grembergen near Dendermonde, Belgium - November 12, 1921 in Brussels, Belgium) was a Belgian symbolist painter.
Fernand Khnopff was born to a wealthy family that was part of the high bourgeoisie for generations. Khnopff's ancestors had lived in Flanders since the early 17th-century but were of Austrian and Portuguese descent. Most male members of his family had been lawyers or judges, and y...
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Fernand Edmond Jean Marie Khnopff (September 12, 1858 in Grembergen near Dendermonde, Belgium - November 12, 1921 in Brussels, Belgium) was a Belgian symbolist painter.
Fernand Khnopff was born to a wealthy family that was part of the high bourgeoisie for generations. Khnopff's ancestors had lived in Flanders since the early 17th-century but were of Austrian and Portuguese descent. Most male members of his family had been lawyers or judges, and young Fernand was destined for a juridical career. In his early childhood (1859-1864) he lived in Bruges where his father was appointed Substitut Du Procureur Du Roi. His childhood memories of the medieval city of Bruges would play a significant role in his later work. In 1864 the family moved to Brussels.
To please his parents he went to law school at the Free University of Brussels (now divided into the Université Libre de Bruxelles and the Vrije Universiteit Brussel) when he was 18 years old. During this period he developed a passion for...
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