Edgard Tytgat (1879–1957) is a multifaceted artist who spent most of his life in Brussels, and is best known for developing a style entirely his own. Before the First World War, Tytgat belonged to the same artistic circle as Rik Wouters and Jean Brusselmans. They exhibited their works alongside other Belgian Fauvists at the Galerie Georges Giroux in Brussels. During the war years, Tytgat followed his friend and colleague Constant Permeke to London, focusing on graphic works and album illustrations. Tytgat’s artistic evolution changed drastically after the wartime experience.

In the 1920s, Tytgat developed a deeply personal form of Expressionism, strongly inspired by folk art. A passionate admirer of music, theatre, and the circus, he drew from these worlds to shape his visual language. Each of his paintings tells a story — his art remained resolutely narrative and illustrative. Recurring themes include the relationship between men and women and scenes drawn from his own life. During this period, Tytgat
exhibited at the Galerie Le Centaure in Brussels, a time marked by artistic stability and the support of several patrons.

The fresh energy, sometimes ironic and playful, of the subjects in his paintings recalls the densely populated universe of Brueghel, but in a modern twentieth-century light. Tytgat’s mischievous, witty, yet childlike gaze is never absent from his creations. A sharp and meticulous observer, he found endless inspiration in everyday life — sometimes simply by leaning out of the window to watch people passing by. “A window! What happiness! It is through the window that one breathes and lets oneself be inspired.

From 1940 to 1950, his palette gradually brightened, while his painterly approach loosened, shedding its earlier rigidity. During this period, he began to draw inspiration from religious themes, heroic tragedies, and anecdotal narratives. His wife, Marie, frequently appeared as a model in his works. From 1950 onwards, mythology also became a source of inspiration, rendered in the same light and playful manner.