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Jean Baptiste Robie was a painter of still lives, flowers, fruits and landscapes. The son of a smith, his beginnings were difficult. He has been described as the master of the cult of the rose. E De Taye describes his works as being painted with a ‘solid although somewhat precious virtuosity of facture, connected to a sound research of picturesque and rich composition.’ He also reported that J B Robie earned a little money by painting portraits of Napoleon for British tourists. Robie studied at the Brussels Academy with Balthasar Tasson (1811-1890) and befriended Theodore Fourmois (1814-1871.) Robie travelled throughout Europe visiting Italy, Spain, France and Germany. He also travelled extensively in the Near East, Egypt, Syria and Palestine. His most lengthy sojourn abroad was in India between 1880 and 1881. He described these travels and his apprenticeship in Les Debuts d’un Peintre published in 1886.
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J B Robie was repeatedly honoured by the Belgian nation. He was made a Knight of the Order of Léopold in 1861, progressing to the status Officer in 1869 and Commander in 1881. He was also a Knight of the Legion d’Honneur.
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Jean Baptiste Robie made his début at the Brussels Salon in 1843 where he continued to exhibit in 1848, 1850, 1854, 1857, 1860, 1863, 1867, and 1875. Robie won a gold medal at the Brussels Salon in 1848 and a third class medal in 1850. He also participated in the 1880 Palais des Beaux-Arts exhibition in honour of the fiftieth anniversary of the unification of Belgium into a nation state. He also exhibited at Ghent in 1853, in Antwerp in 1861 and 1863. J B Robie made a reputation in France exhibiting at the Paris Salon in 1863 and at the World’s Fair held in Paris in 1885.
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The work of Jean Baptiste Robie is represented in several museums including the Musée Royale des Beaux-Arts, Brussels and the Ghent Museum.
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