AN ABRIDGED HISTORY OF EUROPE 
by William M. Brinton 

Jan Vermeer

Jan Vermeer was a Dutch painter who excelled in portraying comfortable interior scenes that are composed with mathematical clarity and suffused with cool, silvery light.

Vermeer, also called Jan van der Meer van Delft, was born in Delft and baptized on October 31, 1632. After serving a six-year apprenticeship, part of it probably under the Dutch painter Carel Fabritius, he was admitted in 1653 to the guild of Saint Luke of Delft as a master painter. An important member of the guild, he served four terms on its board of governors and appears to have been well known to his contemporaries. He made a modest living as an art dealer rather than as a painter.

Only 35 of Vermeer's canvases have survived, and none appears to have been sold. Their small number is the result of Vermeer's deliberate, methodical work habits, comparatively short life, and the disappearance of many of his paintings during the period of obscurity following his death in Delft on December 15, 1675. With a few exceptions, including some landscapes, street scenes, and portraits, Vermeer painted sunlit domestic interiors in which one or two figures are shown engaged in reading, writing, or playing musical instruments. These objectively observed, precisely executed genre paintings of 17th-century Dutch life are characterized by a geometrical sense of order.

Vermeer was a master of composition and in the representation of space. He arranged tonal values and perspective over the foreground, into the middleground, and farther into the distance in such works as Girl Asleep at a Table (circa 1656, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City). In Maidservant Pouring Milk (1660, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam), Woman with a Water Jug (1663, Metropolitan Museum), View of Delft (circa 1660, Mauritshuis, The Hague), and other works, he recorded the effects of light with a subtlety, delicacy, and purity of color that probably never have been surpassed. Among his paintings are Soldier and Laughing Girl (1657, Frick Collection, New York City), and Girl with a Red Hat (1667, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.). Vermeer was forgotten after his death and not rediscovered until the late 19th century. His reputation steadily increased thereafter. He is today considered one of the greatest Dutch painters. His work was forged for a time and sold to the Germans during World War II.

From: Carol Gerten's Fine Art (CGFA)
http://mirrors.israsrv.net.il/cgfa/vermeer/vermeer_bio.htm

The Milkmaid (1658-60), Jan Vermeer
Rijksmuseum at Amsterdam
Carol Gerten's Fine Art (CGFA)
http://mirrors.isrsasrv.net.il/cgfa/vermeer/

The Music Lesson (1662-65), Jan Vermeer
Oil on canvas, Royal Collection of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
Carol Gerten's Fine Art (CGFA)
http://mirrors.israsrv.net.il/cgfa/vermeer/

The Concert (c 1665-66)
Jan Vermeer
Oil on canvas (52 x 45.5 cm)
Stadelsches Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt am Main
Mark Harden's Artchive
http://artchive.com/artchive/V/vermeer.html

The Geographer (c. 1668-69)
Jan Vermeer
Oil on canvas (52 x 45.5 cm)
Stadelsches Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt am Main
Mark Harden's Artchive
http://artchive.com/artchive/V/vermeer.html

"In "The Geographer", Vermeer presents another individual in an interior. This male figure, though, is endowed with intense energy in comparison to the contemplative women of other compositions. The flow of light from left to right activates the canvas. The flow is accentuated compositionally by the massing of objects on the left. The light spills forcefully into the open area on the right, casting a powerful series of diagonal shadows. Vermeer adjusted his initial depiction of the figure to provide a more active stance. Detailed study of the canvas reveals that the geographer originally looked down at the table, with his dividers also pointed down. Adjusting the composition to align the man's face and the dividers with the flow of light gave further energy to the movement across the canvas. The folds of the robe also serve to activate the figure, with their dynamic, almost abstract depiction in their sunlit portion.

"The painting accurately renders the cartographic objects that express the theme: the sea chart, globe, dividers, square and a cross-staff that was used to measure the elevation angle of the sun and stars. It is probable that Vermeer's sophisticated presentation of these instruments was informed by his association with famed scientist Anthony Van Leeuwenhoek. Although no documents exist linking the two, they were both born in Delft in the same year. A contemporary portrait of Leeuwenhoek closely resembles the figure in Vermeer's geographer, and it is very possible that Leewenhoek served as the model.

"Another Vermeer work, "The Astronomer", is commonly considered a pendant to "The Geographer". In it, the same model is depicted, this time among the instruments of astronomical study. Both paintings dramatically convey the excitement of scholarly inquiry and discovery. Considering these works as pendants offers an allegorical interpretation: the astronomer, student of the heavens, searches for spiritual guidance; the geographer, student of the earth, charts the proper course for temporal life."

By Mark Harden
Mark Harden's Artchive
http://artchive.com/artchive/V/vermeer.html

The Lacemaker (c. 1669-70)
Jan Vermeer
Oil on canvas transferred to panel (23.9 x 20.5 cm)
Musée du Louvre, Paris
Mark Harden's Artchive
http://artchive.com/artchive/V/vermeer.html

"The Lacemaker" is another small scale painting, nearly dwarfed by its impressive wooden frame. Unlike the more contemplative figures in Vermeer's work, the subject here is very active, intensely focused on a physical activity. As opposed to the full-figure compositions, where furniture and drapery act to facilitate or deflect the viewer's visual entry, "The Lacemaker" brings the subject dramatically to the foreground. As a result, the viewer is drawn into a powerful emotional engagement with the work. Although the composition is quite shallow, there are different depths of field that draw the viewer into the canvas. The forms nearest the eye are unfocused, which encourages the viewer to pass on to the more distinctly defined middleground.

"The intimacy is accentuated by the small scale, personal subject matter, and natural composition. The lacemaker's total preoccupation with her work is indicated through her confined pose. The use of yellow, a dynamic, psychologically strong hue, reinforces the perception of intense effort. Contrasts of form serve to animate the image. For example, her hairstyle expresses her essential nature – both tightly constrained and, in the loose ringlet behind her left shoulder, rhythmically flowing. Another strong contrast exists between the tightly drawn threads she holds and the smoothly flowing red and white threads in the foreground. The precision and clearness of vision demanded by her work is expressed in the light accents that illuminate her forehead and fingers.

"The diffused ocular effect of the foreground objects, especially the threads, was definitely derived from a camera obscura image. Vermeer used the informal, close framing of the composition suggested by the camera obscura to accentuate the realistic, immediate impact of the painting. Contemporary Dutch painting portrayed industriousness as an allegory of domestic virtue, While the inclusion of the prayer book pays fealty to this theme, it is a secondary concern to the depiction of the handicraft of lacemaking, and, in the highest sense, the creative act itself. Once again, Vermeer succeeded in transforming a transitory image into one of eternal truth."

By Mark Harden
Mark Harden's Artchive
http://artchive.com/artchive/V/vermeer.html

Woman and Two Men (1659-60)
Jan Vermeer
Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum, Brunswick
Carol Gerten's Fine Art (CGFA)
http://mirrors.israsrv.net.il/cgfa/vermeer/

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All contents © 1999 William M. Brinton