In Peking he was assigned the post of professor in the arts at the Catholic University and practised Chinese painting under the guidance of the scholar-artist Pu Xinyu. He took the Chinese name Fang Xisheng.
Christian subject matter painted in the Chinese style came to define his oeuvre.
This 3ft 9in x 2ft 7in (1.14m x 80cm) ink and colour on paper scene, signed and dated Peking 1939, is typical.
At the Belgium firm Coronari Auctions (27.5% buyer’s premium) in Nazareth on September 4, it sold at €8000 (£7270) – many times the €250-500 estimate.