Shepherdess with Her Herd by Louis Robbe

Louis Robbe (Belgian, 1806-1887) Oil on canvas 32 x 47 in.  44-½ x 59-½ in. framed Louis-Marie-Dominique-Romain Robbe, a prominent Belgian painter, engraver, and lawyer, was born on November 17, 1806, in Courtrai. Raised in a family where the legal profession held prestige, he initially followed his father Dominique Robbe's aspirations for a similar path. Louis displayed an early talent for drawing, nurtured during his schooling at the Dathis brothers' institution in Kortrijk, under the tutelage of the calligrapher-musician Jean van de Wiele.His artistic inclinations led him to enroll at the local Academy, but the uncertainties of an artistic career prompted him to shift his focus towards law. Completing his studies at the University of Ghent, he defended a thesis on divorce in 1830 before embarking on a legal career that commenced with an internship in Anseghem and later as a justice of the peace in Moorseele.Despite his legal pursuits, Robbe's passion for art persisted. Guided by Jan