© Frederik Beyens

A musical Sunday afternoon

Google Arts & Culture

Antwerp, 1887. A Sunday afternoon. A group of friends meet on the Linkeroever (Left Bank), next to Café Belvédère. A guitarist plays a song while the sun shines and the beer is flowing. This is the setting of 'Sunday Afternoon at Sint-Anneke', a painting by Louis Van Engelen.

A musical painting

The vibrant work depicts a sunny afternoon near Sint-Anneke, a small hamlet opposite Antwerp on the other side of the Scheldt River. Music plays an important role in the painting. 

Van Engelen painted himself at work. He is sitting at a small table at the far left front, chatting with a woman. Who was Louis Van Engelen? What inspired him to create this painting? And who are all these acquaintances and friends of his that Van Engelen so beautifully portrays here?

In this tour

You will step into the painting, meet some of the characters and learn more about the painter and the Antwerp musical life of the late 19th century.

Dive into the story

Tip

Keep an eye on our Google Arts & Culture page: we continually add new stories, photos and, of course, new music to the page.

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