Aa, Dirck van der

Aa, Dirck van der (b The Hague, 1731; d The Hague, 23 Feb. 1809).
The best-known member of a family of Dutch painters from The Hague. He specialized in grisaille decorative paintings for patrician houses in the city, carrying on the tradition of Jacob de Wit. His style was strongly influenced by French Rococo art; indeed his work has sometimes passed under the name of Fragonard, as with a pair of panels of Cupids in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. There was another van der Aa family of artists active in the 18th century in Leiden; most of the members were illustrators or engravers.