MIERIS, WILLIAM, an artist, the son of Francis Mieris the Elder, was born at Leyden in 1662. He imitated the style of his father, but having lost him by death just as he was entering on the study of his art, he was deprived of the advantage he might otherwise have derived from his skill and experience. As a painter, he is not equal to his father in the nice and elaborate accuracy of his works; but for bright and gorgeous colouring, and for the minuteness of his imitation of natural objects, his pictures are much esteemed, and sometimes even placed above those of his father. He has painted many ordinary scenes from nature, and also many historical and poetical pieces. His landscapes are often unnatural, and his costumes are not always appropriate. He died in 1747.