Gerard Ceunis (1885 – 1964) was a talented Belgian artist who came to England as a refugee during the First World War, settling in Hitchin, where he opened ‘Maison Gerard’, a successful ladies’ clothes shop in Market Place. 

The exhibition includes much-loved oil paintings of local scenes from the museum’s own collection, and many more borrowed from a private family collection. It is a unique opportunity to see his early Belgian Impressionist paintings, in a style known as Luminism, where Ceunis focuses on the effects of light in the landscape.

To accompany the exhibition, an illustrated catalogue explores the life and work of Gerard Ceunis, bringing together new research, family photographs and insights into the artist’s remarkable journey from Belgium to Hitchin. Written by Rosamond Allwood and Martin Robb, it offers a fascinating look at the man behind the paintings and the stories that shaped his life and career. It is available from the museum shop.