born 1605/06, Oudenaarde, Flanders
died January 1638, Antwerp
Flemish painter.
After studying with Frans Hals in Haarlem с 1623, he returned to Flanders and by 1631 had settled in Antwerp. His pictures, mostly small and painted on panels, typically depict peasants drinking and brawling in taverns. The coarseness of his subjects was in direct contrast to his delicate technique; his virtuoso brushwork and sparkling tonal values were unsurpassed. Brouwer popularized genre painting in Flanders and Holland. Adriaen van Ostade and David Teniers were among his many followers.