Pierre Nuyttens

Antwerp-born American painter Pierre Nuytens was a 20th century painter and etcher who studied art in his native Belgium at the Antwerpen Royal Academy, and then went to Paris to complete his education at the École des Beaux-Arts. Nuyttens began to exhibit his paintings in both Antwerpen and Bruxelles in 1905. By the end of World War I, he emerged as one of Belgium’s leading artists and received a bronze medal from the Queen of Belgium, as well as the Chevalier of the Order of Leopold II. He illustrated novels and also designed propaganda posters during World War I.

Nuyttens moved to the United States around 1925, settling in New York City, but by 1934 he had moved to Chicago. In America, he became well known for his landscapes, cityscapes, figure studies and animal depictions. He also painted numerous portraits and was a full member of the Art Institute of Chicago. In 1960, he died in an apartment fire, which also destroyed large parts of his work. The portrait of Sir Thomas Lipton (1850-1931), a British businessman and yacht owner, was an etching, probably as well as that of Helen Wills Moody.