Johannes Vermeer

Delft

He was born there in 1632 and hardly ever left the city.

💡 Did you know? Vermeer scarcely left his home town of Delft: nearly all his work was made in one or two rooms of his house.

quiet everyday scenes

Vermeer mostly painted quiet interiors with solitary women reading, making music or at housework.

💡 Did you know? Again and again light falls through a window from the left: Vermeer's unmistakable trademark.

the light

Vermeer caught the light with tiny, pearly dabs of paint that make surfaces glisten.

💡 Did you know? He is thought to have used a "camera obscura" for it.

only about 35 paintings

He worked extremely slowly; each picture is regarded as a jewel.

💡 Did you know? Only about 35 paintings by Vermeer are known: each is a precious rarity.

Girl with a Pearl Earring

„Girl with a Pearl Earring“ is called „the Mona Lisa of the North“ for its enigmatic charm.

💡 Did you know? Who the girl was is unknown: the picture is not a portrait but a „tronie,“ a study of an expression.

forgotten, then rediscovered

He died impoverished in Delft.

💡 Did you know? After his death Vermeer was nearly forgotten for 200 years, until a French critic rediscovered him in the 19th century.

Girl with a Pearl Earring

Around 1665: "the Mona Lisa of the North".

💡 Did you know? The famous pearl is probably just a dab of paint: a painted illusion rather than a real pearl.

The Milkmaid

Around 1660: a maid pouring milk, in still light.

💡 Did you know? The thin stream of milk and the breadcrumbs are among the most famous details in all of painting.

View of Delft

Around 1661: one of the most beautiful cityscapes in painting.

💡 Did you know? Vermeer's rare cityscape was to Marcel Proust „the most beautiful painting in the world.“

The Astronomer

Painted around 1664.

💡 Did you know? One of only two pictures of a scholar: the astronomer reaches for a celestial globe.

The Art of Painting

Painted around 1667.

💡 Did you know? Vermeer shows a painter from behind in his studio: probably an allegory of art itself; he never sold the picture.

The Little Street

Painted around 1658.

💡 Did you know? A plain row of houses: one of only two surviving outdoor pictures by Vermeer.

Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window

Painted around 1658.

💡 Did you know? During restoration an overpainted Cupid emerged in the background: a hidden hint at love.

Woman Holding a Balance

Painted around 1665.

💡 Did you know? The balance in her hand is empty: it is about weighing and inner equilibrium, not gold.

The Geographer

Painted around 1668.

💡 Did you know? The counterpart to „The Astronomer“: both probably show the same man, perhaps the scientist van Leeuwenhoek.

Woman in Blue Reading a Letter

Painted around 1664.

💡 Did you know? The glowing blue comes from the costly pigment ultramarine, which Vermeer used lavishly.

The Concert

Painted around 1663.

💡 Did you know? This picture was stolen in Boston in 1990 and remains missing: the most valuable unsolved art crime.

The Music Lesson

Painted around 1662.

💡 Did you know? In the mirror above the girl Vermeer's easel also appears: a hidden self-reference.

The Lacemaker

“The Lacemaker” (c. 1669 to 1671) hangs in the Louvre and, at 24 by 21 centimetres, is the smallest surviving painting by Vermeer: barely larger than a sheet of paper.

💡 Did you know? Salvador Dalí was obsessed with the picture: he copied it again and again and had himself filmed in front of it at the Louvre in 1955: accompanied by a rhinoceros.