Reclining Nude

Paul Daxhelet (25 November 1905, Huy – 3 October 1993, Liège) was a Belgian painter and graphic artist. His work was part of the art competitions at the 1936 Summer Olympics and the 1948 Summer Olympics.

He was a pupil of François Maréchal, Jean Ochs and Emile Berchmans at the Academy of Liège, and later continued his studies at the Académie Julian in Paris under Renefer Paul and Herman Paul. He subsequently became professor at the Academy of Liège.

In 1933, he exhibited at the Salon in Ghent, presenting De bruiloft van Cana (etching) and Oude haven te Heist (etching). In the same year, he participated in an exhibition of etchings and drypoints at Galerie Studio in Ostend, together with Armand Apol, Henri Mortiaux, Schonberg and Jules Van Paemel.

Daxhelet undertook numerous journeys worldwide, including to the Belgian Congo, India, South America, Polynesia and Senegal. He collaborated with other Liège artists on a portfolio of etchings created on the occasion of the Exposition internationale de l’Eau, held in Liège in 1939.

He worked in a fluent figurative style that remained distinct from mainstream Expressionism. He frequently depicted sporting scenes such as boxing, rowing, hockey and motor racing; he himself was a boxer. He lived at 18 rue Renoz in Liège.

His works are held in the following public collections: Brussels, Print Room; Brussels, Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium; Lausanne, Olympic Museum; Liège, Print Room; Liège, Musée de l’Art Wallon; Liège, University of Liège, Art Collection; and Mons, BAM.