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Van Rysselberghe is the brother of the famous Neo-Impressionist painter Théo van Rysselberghe (1862-1926) and of Charles van Rysselberghe, also an architect, who was active in Ostend and Ghent. After studying at the Ghent Academy of Fine Arts and then visiting Italy, he became a trainee with Joseph Poelaert. His first construction, still Eclectic in design, is known for incorporating what could be the first sgraffiti adornments in Brussels (the Goblet d’Alviella mansion in the rue Faider, 1882). He worked closely with Henry van de Velde on the construction of the Otlet and de Brouckère mansions. However, the most important buildings he created are in the hotel sector, for the Compagnie des Grands Hôtels Européens (in Ostend, Cherbourg, Monte Carlo, Saint Petersburg, Tunis, etc.).