Gaspar Netscher was a Dutch artist who made a name for himself as a portrait painter in the 17th century. He was born in 1639, and died in The Hague, where he worked most of his career, in 1684.
Netscher's father was a German sculptor, Johann Netscher. Netscher was initially apprenticed to still-life and portrait painter, Hendrik Coster, in Arnhem. (Coster now occupies a very minor place in art history.) Around 1654 moved to the workshop of Gerard ter Borch in Deventer to complete his training.
Netscher intended to study painting in Italy, but never got further than France. His earliest known paintings are small-format genre works; he then moved onto subject considered more significant, history pieces and landscapes. His portraits were fames for his depiction of fabrics, particularly silk and brocade (embroidered silk).
