The Knight's Funeral

Baron Hendrik Leys (1815-1869) was a Belgian painter who trained with Mathieu Ignace Van Brée in Antwerp and drew on the Romantic works of Gustaf Wappers. He painted typically Romantic subjects, ranging from heroic scenes of war and brigandage to scenes of daily life such as weddings and country festivals. From 1839 he distanced himself from the Romantic school and moved towards a more sober style. His desire for historical and psychological truthfulness soon replaced the pathos and sentimentality of his earlier works. Seeking to 'resurrect' the spirit and atmosphere of 16th-century Antwerp, Leys painted historical events or scenes of everyday life, all of which demonstrate a scrupulous observation of contemporary life. Moving away from Romanticism Leys was likely influenced by the French Realists Gustave Courbet and Jean-François Millet.