Constant Permeke

Constant Permeke (Dutch: [kɔ̃ːˈstɑ̃ː pɛrˈmeːkə] (31 July 1886 – 4 January 1952) was a Belgian painter and sculptor, and part of the Sint-Martens-Latem-based School of Latem, along with Gustave De Smet and Frits Van den Berghe. A leading figure in Flemish Expressionism, he was among the group of artists influenced by elements of Fauvism and Cubism and an interest in both the ethnic and folk traditions of "primitive" art. Together, they built an independent expressionist movement separate from German Expressionism. In 1922, he was named an officer in the Order of Leopold in honor of his military service. Silenced as an artist, with his work declared degenerate under the Nazi occupation of Belgium (1940–1945), he resumed painting in the late 1940s. From December 1947 to January 1948, a large retrospective of his work was exhibited at the Musée National d'Art Moderne in Paris. Known as the Rétrospective Permeke, the show was also exhibited in Brussels, Amsterdam, and Prague. In 1997, the federal government of Belgium commemorated Permeke by reproducing his portrait and one of his works on the 1,000 Belgian franc bill.