Jacob de Wit
1695 - 1754
Netherlandish painter, born in Amsterdam. At 13 he left for Antwerp, where he was educated at a school for painters. He became acquainted with the work of Rubens and Van Dijck. After two years he returned to Amsterdam.
De Wit is best known for a large number of ceiling and chimney paintings in houses along the canals in Amsterdam. Many of them are grisailles: paintings in white and grey that look like sculptures. His style is often described as rococo.
He was a catholic and therefore got several assignments from catholic institutions such as an orphanage and a clandestine catholic church. Yet he was also commissioned by the protestant city government for a large painting in the city hall.
De Wit died in 1754 in Amsterdam.
art