Although his wife occupied the focus of the majority of his works (around 75% of his oeuvre), Wouters occasionally painted other people and places of particular interest to him. His other muses included natural scapes from his local area (such as trees in the garden or a vase of flowers on the table) or close friends (such as his friend and fellow sculptor, Ernest Wijnants). All of which were painted with the same colourful and bright style. Additionally, Wouters produced a number of self portraits over his painting years. Initially, these were painted in his usual method, however, as his health worsened he began to adopt a bleaker palette, reflecting his situation. Final years Having returned to Belgium, Wouters borrowed 10,000 francs in order to buy a block of land upon which he built a house based on his own architectural designs. He and Nel moved into the new home in the spring of 1914. The First World War enveloped Belgium in 1914 and Wouters was mobilised to the front for over 6 weeks near the city of Liège. After the final fortress there fell, he fled from the Germans with his unit. He then arrived in Antwerp and was deployed in Fort Haasdonk. Wouters also got his first individual exhibition (in Giroux hall) during this year however the symptoms of his disease were beginning to manifest. He was captured and was taken to prisoner-of-war camps in Amersfoort and Zeist, but was provided with materials to paint and draw with. During this time, however, Wouters began to develop eye cancer and his health worsened. In 1915, he was released from the camp on health-related grounds and was reunited with his wife, Nel. In these years he lived with Hélène in an apartment in Amsterdam. The sombre tone of his paintings reflects his worsening health, seen in works such as Self-portrait with black eye patch (1916) and Rik with black eye dressing'' (1916). Wouters lost his eye to cancer 3 months before his death on 11 July 1916. Hélène remained in Amsterdam until 1919. She then moved backed to Belgium and remarried with a doctor. Hélène died in 1971 at 85 years of age. Paintings Wouters has created the following paintings: References External links Short biography 1882 births 1916 deaths Artists from Mechelen Fauvism 20th-century Belgian painters 20th-century Belgian sculptors Belgian Army personnel of World War I Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts