(Liège 1640 – Amsterdam 1711)
Gérard de Lairesse was a history painter active in Amsterdam during the second half of the 17th century. Originally from Liège, he was considered a Dutch adoptee and was sometimes nicknamed the “Dutch Poussin”. He was deeply influenced by French culture and enamored with classical Italy. His art was highly intellectual. Towards the end of his life, after becoming blind, he turned to teaching, and the series of lectures he delivered for many years were collected by his sons and formed the basis of his theoretical works: “Principles of Drawing” (1701) and the “Groot Schilderboek” (Great Book of Painters) (1707).
