Fijnschilder by Vincenzo Estremo – IMMA Irish Museum of Modern Art

Fijnschilder

by Vincenzo Estremo

IMMA Irish Museum of Modern Art

In Dutch, fijnschilder means “fine painters”. In XVII and XVIII centuries fijnschilder was a school of painting in Leiden, also known as Leidse Fijnschilders. These painters became identified by their fine manner, and for their extreme attention to details. They used to paint genre scenes, showing everyday life and activities, translating social life into images. Usually, the size of their pictures was small (20×15 cm max), and they were enclosed in simple frames.