Alfred Bastien

 Alfred Théodore Joseph Bastien was a Belgian artist, academic, and soldier renowned for his war art and panoramic paintings.
Bastien attended the Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Ghent, studying with Jean Delvin, and later the Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Brussels under Jean-François Portaels. In 1897, he won the prestigious Prix Godecharle and then studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris.

During World War I, Bastien served as a war artist. He was attached to the Canadian Battalion and produced works that are now part of the Beaverbrook Collection of War Art at the Canadian War Museum. Bastien also created numerous drawings and sketches of the Belgian front lines, published in magazines such as the Illustrated War News.

One of his most significant works is the "Panorama de l'Yser," a massive 115-metre-long and 14-metre-high painting depicting the Yser Front. This panorama was exhibited in Brussels and later in Ostend, where a special building was constructed to house it. The painting was a great financial success and attracted many visitors, including royalty and international dignitaries.

Bastien's post-war career included creating the "Panorama de la Bataille de la Meuse" in 1937, which depicted scenes from the fighting in Namur and Dinant during August 1914. This work, however, suffered damage during World War II.

He served as a professor and director at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels and influenced many students, including Wu Zuoren, the future head of the China Central Academy of Fine Arts. Bastien received numerous honours, including becoming a Grand Officer in the Order of Leopold in 1919 and a member of the Royal Academy of Science, Letters and Fine Arts of Belgium in 1945.