Although committed to being an artist, his adventurous personality sought other outlets for his creativity, including a stint as an acrobat in a German circus. In 1886, he visited the so-called "Congo Free State" as part of a brief expedition. Finding himself impressed with the artistic potential of Africa, he made another trip there from 1887 to 1888 at his own expense, having been unable to find sponsors. He travelled throughout the Bas-Congo, then sailed up the Congo River to what is now Équateur Province, painting landscapes along the way. Upon his return to Belgium, he held several successful exhibitions, but was later ignored at the Exposition Internationale d'Anvers (1894).