Johannes Vermeer

Vermeer specialized in painting daily life in his hometown Delft. A row of houses past which many people would have walked, a domestic chore, or a woman with a letter – the artist captures our attention with such otherwise mundane tableaux.

Viewers can enter the intimate world portrayed in Vermeer's paintings. He makes us – as invisible witnesses – privy to private moments that unfolded over 350 years ago. What is in the letter? Did she receive it from a lover?

The way Vermeer frames his compositions is simply phenomenal. The sides of the houses in The Little Street are abruptly cut off, whereby you have to visualize the rest of the facades yourself. The painting thus stimulates your imagination.

People, furniture, kitchen utensils and food: Vermeer positioned them in his paintings with utmost precision. His astutely conceived compositions with a limited number of carefully chosen figures and objects are harmoniously balanced.

Vermeer’s paintings testify to his profound understanding of the fall of light. Fabrics shimmer and the shadows on the wall seem almost real. The letter catches the daylight, immediately drawing your eye to it. In this way, Vermeer dictates what you look at first.

In his paintings Vermeer masterfully created depth, for instance, with through-views into different rooms. The illusion of space if reinforced by the beholder’s curiosity about what is taking place there.

Vermeer was not rich, but he spared no expense when it came to his painting materials. As a result, the bright colours still sparkle hundreds of years later. For example, he made blue paint with a pigment consisting of crushed lapis lazuli, a costly semi-precious stone from Afghanistan.

Vermeer created a harmonious unity by having certain colours recur in his compositions. For example, various shades of blue can be seen not only in the bed jacket of the Woman Reading a Letter, but also in the chairs, the knob of the pole for the wall map and even the shadows.

Vermeer’s paintings continue to command the attention of his public, even that of people who have studied them many times. Details, such as tiles in a corner, or a nail in the white wall only become noticeable upon closer scrutiny.

Only 35 paintings by Vermeer are known. He carefully built up his compositions with layers of skilfully applied oil paint. Vermeer’s modest oeuvre reflects the time and care he lavished on each of his paintings. The quality of these masterpieces is consistently high.