Herman Jean Joseph Richir (Belgian painter) 1866 - 1942
Herman Richir first studied at the Art Academy of the Brussels municipality of Sint-Joost-ten-Node by Gustave Biot and Charles Hermans. Then it went to the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels (1884-1889) where he was taught by, among others Jean Portaels. He finished second in the Prix de Rome for painting 1886, after laureate Constant Montald. He became a teacher in 1900, drawing from nature at the Brussels Academy and in 1905 first teacher painting from nature. He took several times the directorship of the Brussels Academy (1906-1907, 1910, 1911, 1915-1919, 1925-1927). He went in 1927 alone. His pupils included Albert Alleman, René Clarot, Roger Gobron, Paul Hagemans, Maurice Mareels, Guy Onkelinx, Georges Rogy, José Storie and Charles Swyncop. Richir mainly painted portraits. His clients were generally in the upper classes. He portrayed among others, King Albert and Queen Elisabeth, Cardinal Mercier and Countess d'Oultremont. He also painted still lifes, genre scenes, nudes and occasionally decorative paintings to fit into homes. An example is the ensemble of 12 decorative panels for the house of M. Fontaine de Laveleye in Boitsfort. Less known are the landscape paintings he made, including in the area of Genk in the Limburg Kempen. He designed posters, including the department stores Delhaize. Previously, he worked under the pseudonym "Hamner".
