Aleksander Lesser (13 May 1814 – 13 March 1884) was a Polish painter, illustrator, sketch artist, art critic, and amateur researcher of antiquities.

[1] He was a member of Kraków's Academy of Learning and co-founder of Warsaw's Zachęta, the Society for Encouragement of the Fine Arts.

[1] Between 1836 and 1846, Lesser studied in Munich under Peter Cornelius, Heinrich Hess, and Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld; these individuals were prominent representatives of German romanticism who called themselves Nazarenes.

[3] Lesser returned to Warsaw in 1846, where he was widely praised for his treatment of historical and religious (primarily Christian) themes, as well as for his portraits and genre scenes.

Many of his paintings, including Obrona Trembowli (The Defense of Trembowla; 1840), were interpreted by both critics and the public as allegories of the Polish struggle for independence.