Brief Biography-Jean-Baptiste Van Loo was one of a large family of painters, his grandfather Jacob van Loo being the first of the dynasty. His father, Louis-Abraham, was his initial tutor. He left his home town of Aix-en-Provence and went to Rome where Benedetto Luti tutored him. In Italy, the church and nobility engaged his services, both in religious subjects and portraiture. In Paris, he became a member of the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture. He worked for a brief period in England, painting portraits of nobility before moving to Paris. His last few years living in Aix-en-Provence were due to ill health. Carle van Loo, his younger brother, was another successful artist of the family.