Leemputten, Jef Louis van

Jef Louis van Leemputten was born in Werchter, Belgium, in 1840. He grew up in a rural environment, which deeply influenced his artistic focus. While relatively little is documented about his formal academic training, it is believed that he studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels and was heavily influenced by the Barbizon School and Dutch Golden Age painting, both of which emphasized naturalistic landscapes and scenes from daily rural life. he style of his is paintings is described as Realism or Rural Romanticism. His main subjects are landscapes, peasant life, farm animals (especially sheep), rural celebrations. Van Leemputten's brother, Cornelis van Leemputten, was also a painter, and both shared a fondness for rustic themes—though Jef Louis's work is considered somewhat more animated and painterly.