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Fine art

The Intrigue

James Ensor

1890 · Oil on canvas · Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp

Size3:2 ratio

Will it fit? See it to scale above your sofa, bed or mantel

Frame

$79Unframed print · made to order

📦 Free shipping on every order, arriving in 4–9 business days with production included. Express ($14.90) at checkout arrives in 4–6 business days.

Complete the setHangs well with these two

This print

The Intrigue

Christ's Entry into Brussels in 1889

Evening on Karl Johan Street

3 × $79 at 36 × 24 in, unframed = $237 → $213.30 as a set · 10% included · free shipping

Choose different prints →

Giclée-printed to order on heavyweight matte fine-art paper

Free shipping worldwide · arrives in 4–9 business days

Arrives perfect or we reprint it — free

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About this work

Artist: James Ensor (1860–1949)
Year: 1890
Medium: Oil on canvas
Original size: 90 × 150 cm
Collection: Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp (KMSKA)
Movement: Expressionism

Masked figures crowd against a grey, cloudy sky: at the centre a man in a top hat sinks into his coat while a woman in a flowered hat holds on to him, surrounded by grinning women and a figure clutching a doll. Greens, mustard yellow and red are laid on in quick, thick strokes. Ensor painted it in 1890, one of the masquerades that run through his work from 1888, and often staged such scenes with real masks and costumes. Whether the man is a philanderer, a cuckold or a bridegroom is left open. The canvas is in the KMSKA in Antwerp.

This print reproduces the whole work, uncropped, from a high-resolution scan of the original. The original is in the public domain.

Where it works

Mustard, green and red masks against a grey sky make a lively, slightly sinister picture for a hallway, dining room or study. Pair it with Toulouse-Lautrec's At the Moulin Rouge, another gallery of painted faces, at 24×16 in a black frame.

Style, size & framing detail

Style: Expressionism painting
Era: 19th century (1890)
Orientation: Landscape
Mood: classic
Rooms: dining room, hallway or entryway, study or library, living room
Good gift for: housewarming, art lovers

Size. We'd hang this one at 24×16. Prints at 18×12, 24×16, 36×24 in — 18×12 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 24×16 above a console or sideboard; 36×24 as the statement piece above a sofa or headboard.

Framing. The gallery ground is part of the print, so frame it without a mat — dark wood flatters the lighter palette; black sharpens it.

Pairing. Pairs as a set of three with other famous painting prints (10% off three or more).

Details & materials

• Restored in-house from the original painting — cleaned and colour-trued at museum resolution • Heavyweight matte fine-art paper, giclée printed at 300 DPI • Sizes: 18×12, 24×16, 36×24 in; every size also available framed • Framed option: wood frame in black or dark wood, 12 mm wide and 22 mm deep, with a plexiglass front and no mat; the print is mounted inside and the frame's outside measures the listed size • Made to order; colours may vary slightly from screen

Shipping & returns

Printed after you order at the facility nearest you, then shipped. Standard delivery is free and takes 4–9 business days from order to door in the US, UK and EU (up to 10 elsewhere); Express takes 4–6 business days. Because each print is made to order we don't take change-of-mind returns, but if it arrives damaged or flawed we'll reprint or refund it — no return needed. Full policy →

Is this the whole painting, or a crop?

The whole work, uncropped. The image fills the print at the painting's own proportions; nothing is trimmed to fit a frame.

Is The Intrigue in the public domain?

Yes. James Ensor (1860–1949) died more than 70 years ago and the work was made and first published more than 95 years ago, so the painting itself is public domain in the US and Europe. This print is a reproduction made from a high-resolution scan of the original, which is held by Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp (KMSKA).

What is it printed on?

Heavyweight matte fine-art paper with pigment inks, made to order in 18×12, 24×16 and 36×24 inches; every size is also offered framed in black or dark wood, with plexiglass and no mat. Colours are matched to the scan, not brightened.

When was The Intrigue painted, and in what medium?

The Intrigue dates from 1890 and was made in oil on canvas; the original measures 90 × 150 cm.

What size works above a sofa or bed?

Across a three-seat sofa or a queen bed, 36×24 is the size that reads as one statement piece; 24×16 suits a narrower wall or a pair. For The Intrigue we'd choose 24×16. It is a landscape print, wider than it is tall, at the painting's own proportions.

About this design

The Intrigue (James Ensor) — The Intrigue · James Ensor · 1890. This is a fine-art reproduction of a public-domain masterwork, shown whole and uncropped on a gallery ground, printed to order on heavyweight matte fine-art paper. Every size is offered unframed or framed in black or dark wood. Part of the Madten Fine Art Collection. — — — Printed to order and shipped by our production partner, Gelato.

Buy with confidence

The Madten promise

Gallery-grade archival giclée. Rich pigment inks on heavyweight fine-art paper (or gallery-wrapped canvas) — built to last, not a poster-shop print.

Arrives perfect or we reprint it — free. Every piece is made to order; if it shows up damaged or flawed we remake it, no return needed.

Free worldwide shipping. Made & shipped from the facility nearest you — most orders arrive in 4–9 business days.

Secure checkout. Payments handled by Stripe; we never see or store your card.

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