Pieter de Hooch

Happy Birthday Pieter de Hooch!! Born in 1629 in Holland, Hooch was a genre painter. His father was a bricklayer, his mother a midwife. He was a contemporary of master painter Jan Vermeer. His work made everyday life special with his treatment of light, color and experimentation with perspective. It is unclear whether Vermeer influenced him or vice versa, but both painters left behind incredible legacy. He married and had 7 children, putting great strain on him to provide for his large family and to make matters worse, his wife died when he was 38. Sadly, de Hooch died in 1684 in an insane asylum. The painting included here today is titled A Farm Servant in the Backyard.