1. Anna Boch was the only female member of Les XX
Based in Brussels, Les XX (literally the twenty) was a group of 20 painters, designers, and sculptors, including James Ensor, Fernand Khnopf, Felicien Rops. Their secretary was Octave Maus, a lawyer, art critic, journalist, and also Anna Boch’s cousin. Initially created for Belgian artists, they later accepted French artists like Auguste Rodin and Paul Signac. Les XX were renowned for their concerts, conferences, and exhibitions. Each year they held a major show to exhibit their art. This was also an opportunity to invite brilliant talents of their time to participate: Camille Pissaro, Georges Seurat, Paul Gauguin, Vincent Van Gogh, Paul Cézanne, Odilon Redon, among others. In short, these events as well as their magazine L’Art Moderne definitely put Brussels on the art map.
Anna Boch was the only female member of Les XX. She joined the group in 1885 and exhibited regularly at their exhibitions. By the way, it was during one of these shows in 1902 that the Belgian state bought one of her paintings, Coast of Bretagne which hangs in the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Brussels. This was a definitive recognition of her talent.