The Rijksmuseum had 650,000 guests for its extremely anticipated Vermeer blockbuster, which closed on 4 June, making it the most well-liked exhibition within the Amsterdam museum’s historical past. However such was the demand, it might nearly definitely have offered twice as many tickets if there had been the house. For many who missed out have a slower-burn various: visiting the work as soon as they return to their house museums.
There are Vermeer “pilgrims” who journey the world to see all of the Dutch grasp’s works in situ. Fortuitously practically all of the 37 recognized Vermeers are in public collections. Solely two are privately owned: Younger Girl Seated at a Virginal, within the Leiden Assortment of the US businessman Thomas Kaplan, and Saint Praxedis, which is owned by the Tokyo-based Kufu media firm (these two works will stay on show on the Rijksmuseum till 10 October).
Vermeer’s work are scattered between ten cities in Europe (London, Edinburgh, Dublin, Paris, Amsterdam, The Hague, Frankfurt, Braunschweig, Berlin and Dresden), two within the US (New York and Washington, DC) and one in Japan (Tokyo). Travelling to see all of them could seem daunting, however over time the journey will take you to most of the world’s best artwork museums. The Rijksmuseum managed to assemble 28 of the 37 Vermeers, so even these fortunate sufficient to get into the present have just a few extra left to see.
An exception is The Live performance (1662-64), which was famously stolen from Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in 1990, and stays misplaced. Contemplating his small oeuvre, Vermeer should rank as one of many world’s most stolen artists. There have been 4 different thefts of his works between 1971 and 1986, however happily all of these have been recovered.
Right here, The Artwork Newspaper takes you on a whistle-stop tour of the remaining 36 Vermeers (excluding The Live performance) worldwide, beginning in Europe, then crossing the Atlantic and ending up in Tokyo.
Visiting each in its house gallery has the benefit of avoiding the crowds of the Rijksmuseum exhibition (though Woman with a Pearl Earring is all the time surrounded by her admirers on the Mauritshuis). Vermeer is famend for his quiet, intimate scenes of on a regular basis life. Ideally they need to be considered in an environment of calm contemplation, slightly than the push of a “once-in-a-lifetime” exhibition.
Titles and dates for work are these given within the Rijksmuseum’s exhibition catalogue
London
Woman on the Virginals with a Gentleman/The Music Lesson (1662-64), Royal Assortment
A lady is depicted from behind as she stands taking part in a virginal (an early harpsichord) with a well-dressed man at her aspect. He watches her intently, however is he educating or observing her with a lover’s gaze? Vermeer enjoys taking part in with ambiguity and thriller. This portray was initially acquired by George III in 1762 as a piece by Frans van Mieris, a Dutch up to date of Vermeer. It usually hangs in Buckingham Palace.
The Guitar Participant (1670-72), Kenwood Home
The musician turns her face away from us, seemingly a companion outdoors the composition, maybe coming into by a doorway or sitting beside her. On the wall behind her is a pastoral panorama portray, redolent of concord. The work is aptly displayed within the pastoral setting of Kenwood, an 18th-century mansion inside Hampstead Heath.
A Younger Girl standing at a Virginal (1670-72), Nationwide Gallery
That is certainly one of a pair of work that have been separated after which fortuitously reunited at London’s Nationwide Gallery greater than 100 years in the past. An elegantly dressed girl performs a virginal whereas searching at us. Hanging on the wall within the light-filled room is a big portray of Cupid, suggesting that love is within the air.
A Younger Girl seated at a Virginal (1670-72), Nationwide Gallery
The pendant portray presents a seated keyboard participant in a darker room. Gentle catches her face and sleeve as she too turns in the direction of us. Within the foreground rests a viol and bow, awaiting a companion participant. Dirck van Baburen’s brothel scene The Procuress (1622) is seen within the background, probably as a warning in opposition to mercenary love.
Edinburgh
Christ within the Home of Mary and Martha (1654-56), Nationwide Galleries of Scotland
Vermeer’s earliest surviving portray, made in his early 20s, is kind of in contrast to the indoor style scenes he grew to become recognized for. It’s also his largest work, measuring 1.6m excessive. Within the biblical story, Martha busied herself offering meals for Jesus, whereas Mary sat and listened to his phrases of knowledge—and received his reward. As we take a look at the portray, our eyes dance between the three figures.
Dublin
Girl Writing a Letter, together with her Maid (1670-72), Nationwide Gallery of Eire
This quintessential Vermeer scene centres on a letter author. The girl is illuminated by a window, her eyes on the paper. The maid gazes outdoors, presumably ready for her mistress at hand over the letter to ship. After twice being stolen from the Beit household artwork assortment at Russborough Home in Eire in 1974 and 1986, the portray was ultimately recovered by undercover police in 1993.
Paris
The Lacemaker (1666-68), Musée du Louvre
This small, jewel-like portray exhibits a lady concentrating on making lace. Her face is softly rendered, half illuminated by daylight and half solid in shadow. Our eyes dart between her face and the purpose the place her palms come collectively at her intricate work. Within the foreground the white and purple threads tumble down, loosely painted.
The Astronomer (1668), Musée du Louvre
Solely two surviving Vermeers depict a solitary male determine: this certainly one of an astronomer and a companion portray of a geographer, held on the Städel Museum in Frankfurt. The astronomer sits dealing with a window in his examine, reaching out his hand for a celestial globe that hints on the heavens past. In 1940 the portray was confiscated from the Rothschild household by the Nazis for Hitler’s meant museum in Linz. It was restituted after the Second World Conflict and later acquired by the Louvre.
Amsterdam
The Milkmaid (1658-59), Rijksmuseum
The Milkmaid counts as certainly one of Vermeer’s masterpieces, deftly capturing the lady pouring milk into an earthenware pot. Her eyes are lowered in focus, a picture of home advantage. The tabletop of bread loaves is a superbly painted nonetheless life. That is certainly one of 4 Vermeers within the Rijksmuseum assortment.
View of Homes in Delft/The Little Avenue (1658-59), Rijksmuseum
Vermeer’s solely road scene exhibits a part of two homes in his hometown of Delft within the southern Netherlands. There’s a timeless high quality to this peaceable scene, through which two ladies work quietly whereas two young children play beneath a bench. In 2015 a Dutch specialist recognized the situation depicted by Vermeer as Vlamingstraat, though the unique homes have been demolished within the late nineteenth century.
Girl in Blue Studying a Letter (1662-64), Rijksmuseum
A lady stands by a desk, illuminated by a window which is simply out of sight. The sunshine catches the letter which she is studying intently. Her profile suggests she is perhaps pregnant, though that is unsure. The map behind her on the wall makes a hyperlink with the skin world. Though the lady is alone, the presence of the letter author is palpable.
The Love Letter (1669-70), Rijksmuseum
One other of Vermeer’s enigmatic letter work exhibits the mistress of the home with a barely anxious expression after being handed a letter by her maid. Wearing a sublime jacket, she has been interrupted whereas taking part in a cittern. The room is considered by a doorway, partly framed by a tapestry drape.
The Hague
Diana and her Nymphs (1655-56), Mauritshuis
This early Vermeer is his solely mythological portray, depicting the goddess of searching having her toes washed by certainly one of her nymphs. It’s a calm second earlier than Diana is disturbed whereas bathing by the hunter Actaeon, whom she transforms right into a stag to be devoured by his hounds. A docile canine seems in a nook of the composition right here.
View of Delft (1660-61), Mauritshuis
Maybe the best early European townscape, the portray exhibits the ramparts and buildings of Delft, considered from throughout the harbour basin. The tower of the New Church is bathed in daylight however a lot of the remainder of town is in shadow as darkish, stormy clouds collect overhead. The dramatic sky takes up greater than half the composition.
Woman with a Pearl Earring (1664-67), Mauritshuis
Essentially the most well-known Vermeer of all, this easy composition exhibits a younger girl in opposition to a darkish background. She wears a blue and yellow headband, together with an enormous pearl earring that catches the sunshine. Though many have speculated on the identification of the mannequin, this isn’t a portrait, however what the Dutch name a “tronie”, an nameless character examine.
Frankfurt
The Geographer (1669), Städel Museum
This depiction of a scholarly man in his examine is intently related to The Astronomer within the Louvre. The geographer holds a pair of dividers in his proper hand, leaning over a map laid on the desk. He appears to be like up, presumably distracted from his ideas by the world past the window.
Braunschweig
The Woman with the Wine Glass (1659-61), Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
A younger girl smiles immediately at us whereas a well-dressed man holds her hand and bends in the direction of her attentively. One other man rests in a melancholic pose within the background beside a desk with a pearly white wine pitcher—maybe he has been much less fortunate in love. The image was acquired by Duke Anton Ulrich of Brunswick-Lüneburg, a passionate collector of Seventeenth-century Dutch work.
Dresden
The Procuress (1656), Gëmaldegalerie Alte Meister
This early work depicts a pair alongside an aged procuress and a musician. A younger girl places out her hand, able to obtain a gold coin from the soldier. The musician gazing immediately at us with a understanding smile has been interpreted by many students as a self-portrait of the artist. Brothel work with a moralising aspect, like this one, have been deemed fairly appropriate for a household house.
Woman Studying a Letter at an Open Window (1657-58), Gëmaldegalerie Alte Meister
A lady in profile intently reads a letter by an open window on this portray that was remodeled when it was restored in 2021. A layer of later overpainting was eliminated to disclose an image hanging on the wall in the back of the composition. This turned out to be of Cupid, the identical work which seems within the Nationwide Gallery’s A Younger Girl standing at a Virginal.
Berlin
The Glass of Wine (1659-61), Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
A lady at a desk is ingesting the final dregs of a glass of wine whereas a person stands with a pitcher at hand to supply a refill. The glass obscures the lady’s face, rendering her ideas obscure. Gentle floods in by a leaded-glass window.
Girl with a Pearl Necklace (1662-64), Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
The woman is alone, caught in a second in time. She appears to be like in the direction of a small mirror as she holds a pearl necklace, maybe contemplating whether or not it’s the acceptable piece to put on together with her ermine-trimmed satin jacket. Like most of Vermeer’s work, its exact which means stays elusive, leaving it as much as us as viewers to replicate on.
Vienna
The Artwork of Portray (1666-68), Kunsthistorisches Museum
Vermeer’s allegorical masterpiece presents an artist together with his mannequin, who performs the function of Clio, the muse of historical past in Greek mythology. She holds a ebook representing historical past and a trumpet representing fame. The long-haired artist, seen from behind and wearing wonderful clothes, could also be Vermeer himself. The Artwork of Portray was acquired by Hitler in 1940 and after the warfare it was handed over to the Austrian state.
New York
A Maid Asleep, (1656-57), Metropolitan Museum of Artwork
A younger girl sits at a desk together with her eyes closed, however it’s unclear whether or not she is definitely asleep, deep in thought or drunk. Her pose, together with her head resting on an arm, additionally suggests melancholy. That is the earliest recognized inside scene by Vermeer, a precursor of the nice works that have been to comply with. It’s amongst 5 Vermeers in New York’s Metropolitan Museum—the most important quantity in anyone museum. (Two are prohibited from travelling by the phrases of donation and weren’t within the Rijksmuseum exhibition.)
Younger Girl with a Lute, (1662-64), Metropolitan Museum of Artwork
The woman is tuning her lute and gazes out of the window as she adjusts the peg. What, we surprise, is she watching outdoors the confines of her room? Behind her hangs a map of Europe, suggestive of the broader world that lies past.
Younger Girl with a Water Pitcher (1662-64), Metropolitan Museum of Artwork
A lady opens a window and grasps a pitcher concurrently in a barely awkward mixture of actions. Nevertheless, her outstretched arms span a lot of the image aircraft, unifying the composition. This was the primary Vermeer to enter an American assortment when it was donated to the Met in 1889.
Research of a Younger Girl (1664-67), Metropolitan Museum of Artwork
The younger girl has an air of innocence together with her softly modelled face and barely dreamy expression. Just like the Woman with a Pearl Earring her hair is swept again underneath an unique headdress and he or she wears a dangling earring. As with that portray, she in all probability represents a “tronie” character examine slightly than a commissioned portrait.
Allegory of the Catholic Religion (1670-74), Metropolitan Museum of Artwork
With its non secular subject material, this can be a most uncommon Vermeer. The work, painted close to the tip of his life, exhibits the allegorical determine of Religion in a dramatic pose, clutching a hand to her chest and resting her foot on a globe. On the ground lies a bitten apple, representing unique sin. Blood spurts from the mouth of a twisted serpent that has been crushed by a stone close by, suggesting the triumph of fine over evil. Vermeer was introduced up as a Protestant however he married a Catholic girl, Catharina Bolnes, and new analysis has reassessed the function of faith in his life.
Officer and Laughing Woman (1656-57), Frick Assortment
There’s a hanging distinction between the shadowy define of the officer and the glowing face of the younger girl. His outsized scale creates a disconcerting impact, although she appears relaxed. All three Vermeers within the Frick Assortment have been lent to the Rijksmuseum exhibition, however this was throughout constructing work and was distinctive. A go to to New York is more likely to be important to see them in future.
Woman Interrupted at Her Music (1659-61), Frick Assortment
The younger girl has been distracted, turning to have a look at us with a quizzical expression. She and the person beside her each maintain a bit of paper, presumably a sheet of music for a lesson or a duet. However is he a instructor or lover? Music was usually related to romance and concord within the Seventeenth century.
Mistress and Maid (1664-67), Frick Assortment
The luxuriously dressed mistress sits at a desk, her hand touching her face in an apprehensive gesture. Her maid holds a letter, though it’s unclear whether or not she is handing it over or has simply taken it for supply. There’s a sense of thriller in regards to the trade, maybe regarding the mistress’s absent correspondent.
Younger Girl Seated at a Virginal, (1670-72), Leiden Assortment
This portray was solely attributed to Vermeer in 2004, when it offered at Sotheby’s for £16.2m. Less complicated and smaller than most of his compositions, it was rejected as a Vermeer within the Forties, however new analysis by the public sale home confirmed its authenticity. The portray now belongs to Thomas Kaplan, a billionaire investor who runs the Electrum Group and owns the New York-based Leiden Assortment of Seventeenth-century Dutch artwork. Though the Vermeer is just not usually on public view, the gathering is a beneficiant lender to exhibitions. Till 10 October the portray will stay on view on the Rijksmuseum, earlier than returning to Kaplan.
Washington, DC
Girl Holding a Stability (1662-64), Nationwide Gallery of Artwork
A pensive girl gently holds a steadiness in her proper hand; her left hand rests on the desk to regular herself. The woman’s head is framed by a portray on the again wall representing the Final Judgement with the weighing of souls, including which means to her actions. It’s amongst 4 Vermeers within the Nationwide Gallery of Artwork assortment.
A Woman Writing (1664-67), Nationwide Gallery of Artwork
The woman is illuminated in a darkened room, daylight falling on half of her face and her wealthy yellow ermine-trimmed jacket (which seems in no fewer than 5 different Vermeer work). Quill in hand, she turns to have a look at us. Gentle catches her pearl drop earrings and the discarded pearl necklace on the desk.
Woman with the Purple Hat (1664-67), Nationwide Gallery of Artwork
This portray and the subsequent have generated appreciable debate over their authenticity, since they’re each on wood panels slightly than canvas and are slightly completely different from Vermeer’s different works. Regardless of some earlier doubts, Woman with a Purple Hat is now accepted as genuine. X-rays have revealed that it’s painted on prime of a portrait of a person, in all probability by one other artist. Till 10 October the portray will stay on view on the Rijksmuseum, earlier than returning to Washington.
Woman with a Flute (1664-67), Nationwide Gallery of Artwork
Unusually, Woman with a Flute appeared within the Rijksmuseum exhibition as an genuine Vermeer even after it was formally downgraded by its proprietor, the Nationwide Gallery of Artwork. The portray is now described by the gallery as coming from the “studio” of Vermeer. If the Washington consultants are appropriate, this throws new mild on Vermeer, who was beforehand assumed to have labored alone.
Tokyo
Saint Praxedis (1655), Nationwide Museum of Western Artwork on long-term mortgage from Kufu Firm
This isn’t a Vermeer composition, however a duplicate of a portray by the Italian artist Felice Ficherelli. It’s a controversial image, since its authenticity was rejected by most Vermeer specialists till its £6.2m sale at Christie’s in 2014. It was purchased by the Japanese media firm Kufu, which has positioned it on long-term mortgage to Tokyo’s Nationwide Museum of Western Artwork. Surprisingly, the museum solely lists it as “attributed to” Vermeer, though it was offered as genuine within the Rijksmuseum exhibition.
