a Flemish painter in the style of Rubens. His father was a surgeon. In 1741, he had a chance meeting with the itinerant painter Jan-Baptist van den Kerckhoven who was in Aarschot to restore a painting. Kerckhoven discovered his talents and convinced his parents to give him art lessons. By 1770, his reputation was such that he became court painter to Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine, Governor of the Austrian Netherlands.
