Simon de Vries, also known as Simon Frisius (born c. 1570–75, in
Harlingen – died c. 1628–29,
The Hague),[1] was a Dutch
engraver.
Life
He started his career in Paris, and worked in Rouen and Amsterdam before moving to the Hague in 1611 where he became a member of the
Confrerie Pictura.[1] He travelled in France, Spain, Germany, Bohemia, and Russia.[1]
Work
Frisius is regarded as one of the first to bring etching to perfection.
Abraham Bosse, in his treatise on the art of engraving, observes that the first artist to whom he was indebted for intelligence was Simon Frisius, whom he thinks was entitled to great credit, as being one of the first to handle the
point with freedom and facility. His etchings are bold and masterly; and in his
hatchings he approaches the neatness and strength of the
graver.
The prints of De Vries are scarce, and are much esteemed. The small figures which he occasionally introduced into his landscapes are correctly drawn. He frequently marked his plates S. F. fecit, but sometimes with the word fecit only.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the
public domain:
Bryan, Michael (1886).
"DE VRIES, Simon". In Graves, Robert Edmund (ed.). Bryan's Dictionary of Painters and Engravers (A–K). Vol. I (3rd ed.). London: George Bell & Sons.