Pieter Oyens (Dutch painter) 1842 - 1894
Pieter Oyens and his twin brother David painted mainly subjects from their surroundings and their daily life as an artist. Reputed to be the studio scenes, recorded in their joint studio. Their work is a virtuoso, with a strong and vibrant press often painted and represents a true "joie de vivre". The brothers were in 1860 for their training drawn to Brussels, where they would settle permanently a few years later. They painted a long time in the same style and same issues, in line with current developments in the Belgian modern art and influenced by the vision of La Société Libre des Beaux-Arts. This established in 1868, Brussels artists advocated artistic freedom as regards style and subject, and wished the imagination of their own time, "la vie modern". * * * David Oyens (Dutch painter) 1842 - 1902 David Oyens was a painter of portraits, interiors & genre scenes, and still life, who - like his twin brother Pieter - was born in Amsterdam, taught by Portaels, and died in Brussels. The Oyens twins were the sons of a banker, who reluctantly bowed to their talent and relieved them from following his own career. They moved to Brussels in the 1860s and shared a studio, sitting for each other and gradually each achieving great success; David won the Ghent Medal in 1880. They both exhibited at the 1889 Exposition universelle in Paris, where Pieter received an honourable mention.
