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Pieter van Laer

Dutch artist
Also known as: Bamboccio

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Pieter van Laer was a Dutch painter active in Rome around the mid-17th century. He is considered the originator of the "Bamboccianti" style, characterized by small, anecdotal paintings of everyday life. Van Laer combined a Netherlandish interest in the picturesque with Caravaggio's dramatic lighting.1

His depictions of Roman lower classes were often humorous or grotesque, drawing criticism from contemporary art critics and painters. Despite the controversy, the Bamboccianti style influenced other genre painters, such as Adriaen Brouwer and Adriaen van Ostade. Van Laer's nickname, "Il Bamboccio," meaning "Large Baby," was given to him due to a physical malformation.1

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