Hendrick ter Brugghen was a Dutch painter who introduced Caravaggio’s dramatic realism to the Northern Netherlands. As a member of the Utrecht Caravaggisti, he adopted strong contrasts of... View More

Hendrick ter Brugghen was a Dutch painter who introduced Caravaggio’s dramatic realism to the Northern Netherlands. As a member of the Utrecht Caravaggisti, he adopted strong contrasts of light and shadow, gritty street characters, and intimate genre scenes.

His works—such as The Calling of St. Matthew and Card Players—merge Italianate lighting with Dutch attention to everyday detail, creating emotionally charged interiors. Though his career was cut short by early death, ter Brugghen’s bold synthesis influenced later Dutch artists and enriched the Netherlands’ Golden Age palette.