In 2009 the Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp displayed a unique
collection of grotesque paintings, drawings and prints by Goya,
Redon and Ensor in an exceptional spring exhibition. In the work
of Francisco de Goya (1746 - 1828), Odilon Redon (1840 - 1916)
and James Ensor (1860 - 1949) the grotesque plays a major part.
A confrontation between their art clarifies and strengthens the
significance of these amazing artists who may be regarded as the
grandmasters of modern art. Goya produced numerous paintings and
drawings of demons, witches and fools, portraying them with a
combination of pity, amusement and dread. Redon seems rather
stern and symbolic, he had a predilection for bizarre subject
matter, like amoebae with human heads, embryos, and large
staring eyes. Ensor, who is best known as the 'painter of
masks', liked to mock everyone and everything in his grotesque
and somewhat disconcerting creations. On the face of it, the
three artists seem worlds apart, but the deeper one explores
their work, the more ob