The Life and Art of Frans Masereel Born in the Belgian coastal town of Blankenberge, West Flanders, Frans Masereel was a painter and graphic artist who worked primarily in France. After his father passed away when he was five, his family moved to Ghent. His upbringing was shaped by his mother's marriage to a physician with strong Socialist convictions, and the family participated in protests against the working conditions of Ghent textile workers. He began his studies at the École des Beaux-Arts in the class of Jean Delvin. His travels to England and Germany inspired his first etchings and wo…