Eduard Karsen

In 1880, along with Toorop, Dekinderen and Willem Witsen, he became one of the founders of the "Kunstenaarsvereniging Sint Lucas", a society inspired by the Guilds of Saint Luke which represented artists in the Low Countries during the Renaissance.

Through Witsen and Albert Verwey, with whom he corresponded frequently, he was introduced into the literary circles of the Tachtigers.

The novelist Frederik van Eeden, who was also a psychiatrist, advised Karsen to visit his friend Witsen in London, as a distraction.

[1] During this time, his feelings changed from love to resentment and, upon returning to Amsterdam, he began to slander her.

His friend, Jan Veth, tried to help resolve the quarrel by organizing a "tribunal", but was unsuccessful.