Frits Van Den Berghe

This portrait of the painter Constant Permeke, and also of a friend, was painted by Fritz Van Den Berghe in 1922–24. The artist adopts the stylistic vocabulary of the Flemish Expressionists: references to Cubism and Constructivism, with a white jumper that appears to be made up of geometric forms and a face that reveals the influence of African art. Permeke’s disproportionately large hand seems to emphasise his earthy nature, whilst the background evokes the world of the sea. The simplification of forms, the power of the volumes and the dark tones of the skin give this portrait a raw quality, yet one from which a great harmony emerges.

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