Gerrit dou biography of michael

Dutch painter (1613–1675)

Gerrit Dou (pronounced[ˈɣɛrɪtdʌu]; 7 April 1613 – 9 February 1675), also known as GerardDouw or Dow, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, whose small, highly polished paintings are typical of the Leiden fijnschilders.

He specialised in genre scenes and is noted for his trompe-l'œil "niche" paintings and candlelit night-scenes with strong chiaroscuro. He was a student of Rembrandt.

Life

Dou was born in Leiden, where his father was a manufacturer of stained-glass.^[1] He studied drawing under Bartholomeus Dolendo, and then trained in the stained-glass workshop of Pieter Couwenhorn.

In February 1628, at the age of fourteen, his father sent him to study painting in the studio of Rembrandt (then aged about 21) who lived nearby.^[1] From Rembrandt, with whom he remained for about three years, he acquired his skill in colouring and in the more subtle effects of chiaroscuro, and his master's style is reflected in