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Artists such as Frans Hals and Rembrandt, and even Vermeer, were keen to show off their virtuoso handling of paint by using clearly visible brushstrokes. It is therefore somewhat paradoxical that one of Rembrandt’s most successful pupils, Gerrit Dou, initiated an entirely different style of painting.

Dou's aim was to achieve an almost enamel-like surface, where brushstrokes were carefully blended so as not to be seen at all. He seems to have reasoned that if a picture was to be lifelike then the process of its making should become invisible.

According to Dou, the individuality of artists could be expressed in their choice of subject matter and use of certain motifs, but not in their brushwork. Dou’s pictures proved popular, and artists such as Frans van Mieris, Godfried Schalcken and many others followed his example. Collectively they are referred to in Dutch as fijnschilders (fine painters).