Background
Lucas Victor Schaefels trained with his father Hendrik Raphael Schaefels, a decorative painter working in a Neo-Classical style and a teacher of decorative design at the Antwerp Academy.
Lucas Victor Schaefels trained with his father Hendrik Raphael Schaefels, a decorative painter working in a Neo-Classical style and a teacher of decorative design at the Antwerp Academy.
He worked in a meticulous style reminiscent of the 17th century Flemish Baroque. Lucas Victor Schaefels began as a student of the Antwerp Academy and later became himself a professor of ornamental design at the Academy, replacing his father in that position. Lucas Victor Schaefels" decorative style and strong sense of design earned him a commission to paint the chapels in a few churches in Antwerp.
He acted as the unofficial town festival designer by designing and organising the public decorations for the many special occasions that took place in Antwerp, which at the time was a center of flower growing, competitions, and shows, as well as of art competitions and exhibitions.
Lucas Victor Schaefels taught many of the next generation of still life painters in Antwerp, including Frans Mortelmans, Joseph Van de Roye and Jules Schaumburg.
