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After prolonged stays in Germany, Venice and Rome, where he studied the works of Giorgione, Michelangelo and Raphael, Jan Van Scorel (1495–1562) returned to Utrecht in 1524. He introduced the techniques of the Renaissance to the Northern Netherlands; his portraits fuse Italian solidity of form with Netherlandish delicacy.

The greatest artist of the Dutch Golden Age (see Rembrant and The Night Watch).

Much loved for his technique of capturing character and fleeting expression in his sitters, Frans Hals (1580–1666) brought a new realism to portraiture in the 17th century. His fine group portraits of civic guards are displayed in the Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem.

Relatively little is known about the life of this sublime Delft artist (1632–75), who inherited his father’s art-dealing business and painted purely for pleasure. He gained some recognition in Holland during his lifetime, but his importance was not established until the late 19th century, and rests on less than 40 known works – mainly domestic interiors with figures – that are extraordinary in their handling of space, light and colour. He was married with 11 children. On his death, his wife was declared bankrupt, and his baker kept two of his paintings against unpaid bills.

A prolific painter of the genre (everyday) scenes so popular in the Dutch 17th century, Jan Steen (1625–79) was an innkeeper as well as an artist. His often bawdy tavern and household narratives were packed with hidden messages (red stockings for prostitution, oysters for sexual liaison, broken eggshells for mortality), creating allegories with a moral purpose.

Born in Haarlem, Jacob van Ruisdael (1629–1682), though not highly regarded in his own day, has come to be seen as one of the finest landscape and seascape painters of the Dutch school. His works are filled with restless skies and naturalistic details. Even calm scenes such asThe Windmill at Wijk have a sense of dramatic grandeur.

As well as portraits, genre paintings and landscapes, still lives had an important place in Dutch 17th-century art. Peter Claesz (1597–1661) reached a peak of technical skill in his harmonious if academic compositions, which are replete with symbolic detail.

A troubled genius who left a vast body of work, despite his tragically short life (see The Life of Vincent van Gogh).

Although he lived in London, Paris and New York (and few of his works are on show in Amsterdam), Mondriaan was born and grew up in Holland (1872–1944). A leading member of the De Stijl movement, he created an abstract style using the simplest elements: straight lines and blocks of primary colour, arranged on the canvas to create harmony and balance.

Born in 1921, Karel Appel was one of the founders of the Cobra movement, started in 1948, which combined expressionist, abstract and surrealist influences (see Cobra Museum). His colourful works display a savage, forceful directness combined with an almost childlike optimism. “I paint like a barbarian in a barbarous age”, he said.