THÉODORE GÉRARD
Belgian 1829-1895


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Belgian artist Théodore Gérard is best known for his charming genre paintings of rural life painted in the Low Countries, the coastal lowland region forming the lower basin of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta in Northwestern Europe. Born in Ghent, Belgium in December 1829, Gérard began his artistic training as a pupil in the Ghent Academy of Fine Arts. In 1863, like many young artists of his day, he moved to the new capital city of Brussels to broaden his career. It was in Brussels that he began to garner recognition for his genre paintings, and by 1870 was receiving international success. Gérard’s paintings were awarded medals in Philadelphia in 1870, London in 1871, Vienna in 1873 and Brussels in 1875. While his early paintings had imitated the style and subject of the Dutch Golden Age painter Gerrit Dou, Gérard’s mature style focused on contemporary genre scenes of the Low Countries, showing joyful moments with intimate spontaneity. He traveled extensively throughout Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which provided inspiration for his paintings which often depicted picturesque historical costume pieces. Gérard’s work was so well respected that he was made a professor at the Brussels Academy of Fine Art. Today, his paintings can be found in museums and public collections worldwide including Brussels, Ghent, the Kortrijk and Antwerp Museums, and many International public collections including the Dover Collections.