Johannes Vermeer. On Reflection

Intro

Vermeer On Reflection 10.9.2021
–2.1.2022
2021
Gemäldegalerie
Alte Meister

Johannes Vermeer, Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, c. 1657-1659 Oil on canvas, 83 x 64,5 cm, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister Dresden, inv.no. 1336, Dresden, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Photo: Wolfgang Kreische

With gaze lowered, a young woman stands holding a letter with both hands. It is crumpled; she is evidently not reading it for the first time. The view of her room is restricted by an illusionistically painted curtain. It also partially covers a painting depicting a youthful Cupid, the god of love – hinting at why the letter is clearly so precious to the girl.

Thanks to the recently completed restoration of Johannes Vermeer’s Girl Reading a Letter at the Open Window, the blond Cupid and other details in the painting are finally visible again.

Delft

Delft A splendid city

Johannes Vermeer, View of Houses in Delft, known as The Little Street, c. 1658 Oil on Canvas, 54.3 x 44 cm, Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum, gift of H.W.A. Deterding, London, inv.no. SK-A-2860, Amsterdam, © Rijksmuseum, Photo: Carola van Wijk

In the seventeenth century, the Republic of the United Netherlands was governed by an aristocratic-bourgeois coalition. The rulers of the individual provinces worked together in a federal system. In the course of the Eighty Years’ War, the northern provinces gained their independence from the Spanish Crown and became a leading economic power. The Peace of Westphalia in 1648 led to its final recognition as a sovereign state.

Schematic Map of the Netherlands in the 17th Century Dresden © Sandstein Kommunikation GmbH

Delft […] in which Towne there are as many Bridges as Dayes in the yeare, and so many Channels and Streets, where Boates doe passe up and downe…
1636 William Crowne, English traveller

Vermeer’s hometown of Delft played an important role in the Dutch War of Independence. Around 1650, it was one of the five largest cities in the Netherlands and had a busy port. Its thriving economy was based on breweries, pottery manufacturing, and carpet weaving. Dutch faience, known in English as delftware, was in great demand on both the domestic and world markets. As an important base of the United East India Company, the city also benefited from the maritime trade in spices, porcelain, and luxury goods.

With its medieval fortifications, numerous canals and bridges, and the tall towers of the Old and New Churches, Delft attracted many travellers. The explosion of the powder magazine in 1654 had devastating effects, leaving large parts of the city in ruins.

Daniel Vosmaer, View of Delft with an Imaginary Loggia, 1663 Oil on canvas, 90.5 x 113 cm, Delft, Collection Museum Prinsenhof, Loan Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands, inv.no. NK 2927, Delft, © Collection Museum Prinsenhof, On loan from the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands, Photo: Tom Haartsen

Knowledge creates prosperity

Education and science were held in high regard in the Netherlands. In addition to universities, modern schools were established that taught in Dutch.

Changes in thinking on matters of religion and philosophy brought about a blossoming of the natural sciences. Empirical science and new discoveries challenged church dogma, but without questioning the existence of God himself. For maritime navigation, land reclamation, and international trade, innovations in science and technology were essential in order to remain economically competitive.

Delft – a place of learning

Although Delft did not have a university, the city was a centre of the natural sciences. Elite intellectual circles with international connections explored questions of optics and microscopy, as well as mathematics and its application in land surveying and perspective. The surgeon, surveyor, and notary Jacob Spoors published a treatise on questions of mathematics and geometry in 1638. He described the role of perspective and optics, as well as light, in the creation of an ideal aesthetic image. He probably also influenced the work of Vermeer, with whom Spoors was personally acquainted.

Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, a cloth merchant and municipal official, developed a handheld microscope with which he examined bacteria and red blood cells. He ground the lenses he required himself. He was appointed as Vermeer’s executor after the artist’s death.

"Sphinx of Delft?"

Johannes Vermeer The "Sphinx of Delft"?

Johannes Vermeer, The Girl with a Wine Glass, c. 1658/59 Oil on canvas, 77.5 x 66.7 cm, Brunswick, Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum, Kunstmuseum des Landes Niedersachsen, inv.no. GG 316, Brunswick, © Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum, Photo: Claus Cordes

Johannes Vermeer – nowadays regarded as a star among the artists of the so-called Golden Age of Dutch painting – was virtually forgotten after his death. It was not until the middle of the nineteenth century that he was rediscovered as an artist thanks to the efforts of the French art historian Théophile Thoré-Bürger. It was also Thoré-Bürger who dubbed the painter the “Sphinx of Delft” since so little was known about him at the time.

Johannes Vermeer was born in Delft in 1632 as the child of a silk weaver, innkeeper and art dealer. After training as a painter, he married the wealthy Catharina Bolnes in 1653 and converted to Catholicism. In the same year he was admitted to the Guild of St Luke as a master painter. In 1660 the family moved into his mother-in-law’s house, where Vermeer lived and worked for the rest of his life. He held important offices in the Guild of St Luke, attained high prices for his paintings, and was consulted as an art expert, all of which demonstrate the high esteem which he and his works enjoyed during his lifetime. Nevertheless, Vermeer died at the age of just 43, leaving behind a widow and eleven children.

Is this perhaps a self-portrait by Johannes Vermeer? This idea is a matter of controversial debate among art scholars. Johannes Vermeer, The Procuress, 1656, Oil on canvas, 143 x 130 cm, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, inv.no. 1335, Dresden, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Photo: Herbert Boswank

On the way to genius

At the beginning of his career, Vermeer painted pictures on mythological and Christian themes. History paintings were considered challenging, were the most prestigious genre, and promised the young artist the best prospect of a secure income.

The scene with Diana, the goddess of the hunt, is described in Ovid’s Metamorphoses: While the nymph Callisto is bathing, her companions notice that she is pregnant, and she is cast out. Artists used this narrative as an opportunity to depict female nudes and dramatic gestures. Vermeer’s figures, on the other hand, are clothed and exude a sense of meditative calm; Callisto herself stands in the dark background.

Johannes Vermeer, Diana and Her Companions, c. 1653/54 Oil on canvas, 97.8 x 104.6 cm, The Hague, Koninklijk Kabinet van Schilderijen, Mauritshuis, inv. No. 406, The Hague © Mauritshuis, photo: Margareta Svensson

This intensely vibrant early work by Vermeer, featuring large-scale figures, belongs to the popular type of scene known as a “merry company”. An elegantly dressed group, in the middle of which a client in a red jacket is about to pay a young courtesan for her services, is assembled behind a balustrade with a carpet hanging over it. Figural types such as the man in Renaissance costume holding a glass, who invites the viewer to witness the scene, the procuress dressed in black, and the couple, are derived from similar scenes painted by the Utrecht Caravaggists, Dutch painters who had studied Caravaggio's works in Italy.

Johannes Vermeer, The Procuress, 1656 Oil on canvas, 143 x 130 cm, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, inv.no. 1335, Dresden, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Photo: Herbert Boswank

By the late 1650s Vermeer had found his preferred subject matter: quiet, poetic interior scenes. The young woman in profile is absorbed in reading a letter. Her clothing, her level of education, and the subtle restraint of her appearance are in keeping with contemporary ideals of femininity during that period. The little Cupid in the picture on the wall of the room comments on the scene: Love is in the air.

Johannes Vermeer, Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, c. 1657-1659 Oil on canvas, 83 x 64,5 cm, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister Dresden, inv.no. 1336, Dresden, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Photo: Wolfgang Kreische

Vermeer teaches himself

Vermeer presumably received his artistic training around 1646-1653. It is not known who his teachers were, nor where his training took place. What is certain is that in the early part of his career he independently honed his skills in various genres and styles. His father’s activities as an art dealer with relevant connections would have given him many opportunities for doing so.

Thus did this Phoenix [Carel Fabritius], to our loss, expire, In the midstand at the height of his powers, But happily there arose out of the fire VERMEER, who masterfully trod in his path.
1667 Dirck van Bleyswijck

Johannes Vermeer’s body of works is small, with only about 35 paintings having survived. Within a very short time, the young artist switched from history paintings to classically elegant genre painting. With his scenes of everyday life among the wealthier classes, he catered to the tastes of the ascendant Dutch bourgeoisie. His pictorial themes and formats changed accordingly.

In the late 1650s Vermeer developed his perspectival interior scenes by incorporating multiple figures. In the corner of a room a small, elegant group is engaged in conversation while drinking wine. The elderly gallant seems to be instructing the young woman, who is sitting bolt upright, in good manners. The man behind the table seems distant and apathetic – an embodiment of the vice of idleness? The allegorical figure of abstinence in the window pane, along with the austere portrait of a gentleman on the wall, form a counterbalance to the suggestive scene.

Johannes Vermeer, The Girl with a Wine Glass, c. 1658/59 Oil on canvas, 77.5 x 66.7 cm, Brunswick, Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum, Kunstmuseum des Landes Niedersachsen, inv.no. GG 316, Brunswick, © Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum, Photo: Claus Cordes

The Little Street is one of only two surviving city views by Vermeer. The Renaissance house with its crow step brick façade, and the adjacent passageway, are enlivened by women and children going about their everyday activities. Vermeer’s painting style alternates between astonishing attention to detail and almost impressionistic sections, between exact depiction of what he observed and significant pictorial inventions. It is possible that the painting depicts the house belonging to the artist’s aunt, but the exact location of the scene has not yet been conclusively clarified.

Johannes Vermeer, View of Houses in Delft, known as The Little Street, c. 1658 Oil on Canvas, 54.3 x 44 cm, Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum, gift of H.W.A. Deterding, London, inv.no. SK-A-2860, Amsterdam, © Rijksmuseum, Photo: Carola van Wijk

The viewer has moved in very close to the young woman. In this painting, the illusionistic quality of the reading woman goes beyond the realism of Vermeer’s earlier scenes depicting interiors. Strong light flooding in from the left creates soft halations on the contours and leaves coloured shadows on the wall. On the wall behind the young woman is a map of Holland and West Frisia – perhaps an allusion to the sender being away travelling?

Johannes Vermeer, Woman in Blue Reading a Letter, c. 1663 Oil on canvas, 46.5 x 39 cm, Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum, bequest of A. van der Hoop, inv.no. SK-C-251, Amsterdam, © Rijksmuseum, Photo: Carola van Wijk

The elegant musician turns towards the viewer with an open expression. The painting of Cupid on the wall behind her is unambiguous in its message: may the harmony of music merge into a consonance of hearts. She is positioned exactly in the middle of a brightly lit room whose furnishings, with their clear geometric forms, focus attention on her. The idealisation of her figure and the tendency towards abstract forms are in keeping with a general stylistic tendency of the 1670s.

Johannes Vermeer, A Young Woman Standing at a Virginal, c. 1670-1672 Oil on canvas, 51.7 x 45.2 cm, London, The National Gallery, inv.no. NG1383, London, © National Gallery

Painting Technique

Light, Space and Structure Vermeer’s Painting Technique

Johannes Vermeer, Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, c. 1657-1659, in detail Johannes Vermeer, Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, in detail, c. 1657-1659, Oil on canvas, 83 x 64,5 cm, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister Dresden, inv.no. 1336, Dresden, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Video: Jürgen Lange

No written documents or drawings that might tell us something about Vermeer’s creative process have survived. However, modern analytical techniques can reveal things that are invisible to the naked eye: corrections in the painting layer show that Vermeer added, removed, or altered pictorial elements during the painting process. His attention was focused on achieving the most perfect, balanced composition possible.

Vermeer’s manner of painting was in keeping with the standard practices of his time. His palette – the twenty or so colours used by the artist – was no different from that of his contemporaries. In addition to earth pigments, the artist used paints made from minerals. He often used the most expensive of these pigments, ultramarine obtained from lapis lazuli. He achieved the exceptional luminosity of individual pictorial elements by using lead white and lead tin yellow.

Vermeer used colour innovatively and very flexibly: paint layers consisting of underpaints and glazes create optical and structural effects that simulate reality. The impasto application of paint gives the depicted objects an almost tangible quality. With its bright points of light, the carpet in the Dresden Girl Reading a Letter demonstrates this impressively, especially in comparison with a detail from a painting by Gerard ter Borch.

Vermeer’s painting style concentrates on the interplay of light and colour. When compared with a work by Caspar Netscher, the difference is clearly evident: Vermeer captured light effects in the way that the eye perceives them – not as an already processed overall image. Over the course of his career, the application of paint in his works became smoother and more refined. In his late works, Vermeer defined surfaces through abstract forms and a decorative brushstroke; his painting technique became simpler.

I went to see a celebrated painter called Vermeer, who showed me some examples of his skill, the most extraordinary and curious aspect of which is perspective.
1669 Pieter Teding van Berckhout

Vermeer and perspective

Vermeer’s paintings demonstrate his understanding of the laws of linear perspective. It is believed that Vermeer established the spatial layout of his paintings directly on the canvas by means of a simple mechanical method: a nail was fixed at the vanishing point of the composition, from which the correct orthogonals could be determined by using a taut length of string. Not all of his paintings, however, adhere precisely to the rules of perspective. In many instances, Vermeer apparently used observation of reality rather than geometrical construction lines.

Restoration

Restoration of a masterpiece

For more than 250 years, Johannes Vermeer’s Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window was seen standing in front of a bare grey wall. Following the painting’s restoration between 2017 and 2021, a large painting depicting a young Cupid (the god of love) is now visible there. The existence of an overpainted picture-within-the-picture had been known about since 1979. What is new is the discovery that the overpainting of the Cupid picture was not done by Vermeer himself.

Johannes Vermeer, Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, c. 1657-59, (1) prior to restoration; (2) after the restoration Oil on canvas, 83 x 64,5 cm, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister Dresden, inv.no. 1336, Dresden, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Photos: (1) Wolfgang Kreische; (2) Herbert Boswank

Millimetre by millimetre - a Cupid is uncovered

The removal of the varnish at the beginning of the restoration process, and the subsequent taking of paint samples, yielded an astonishing result: in the area of the Cupid, a double layer of varnish and dirt was found to exist between the original paint layer and the overpainting layer. This means that the overpainting must have been applied some considerable time after the painting was completed.

In 2017, a commission of experts decided to remove this overpainting and expose Vermeer’s original work. It was then removed millimetre by millimetre using a scalpel under the microscope. What emerged was the excellently preserved and already aged image of a naked, blond boy holding a bow.

Short film about the restoration of the painting Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window (1657-59) by Johannes Vermeer Dresden, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Video: Jürgen Lange

The Cupid is painted over

Why was such a large pictorial element hidden from view?

At the time it was covered over, the Cupid image was evidently in good condition. It was probably erased from the painting for aesthetic reasons. In 1742, when the painting was acquired for the Saxon Elector Friedrich August II, this important detail in the painting was no longer even mentioned. The trail leads to Paris, where the Girl Reading a Letter, along with other paintings, had been in the hands of a restorer before being taken to Dresden.

Vermeer experiments

In the course of painting the Girl Reading a Letter, Vermeer tried out various compositional elements as a means of increasing the sense of depth in the picture: a large roemer glass in the lower right of the painting, or a chair with carved lion’s head finials in front of the table, were intended to enhance the spatial depth. Both these motifs were painted over again by Vermeer. He opted instead for an illusionistic curtain on the right side of the picture, which covers almost a third of the whole painting. The figure of the girl was also initially turned more towards the wall. The reflection of her face in the window still indicates her original position.

Johannes Vermeer, Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, c. 1657-1659, (1) after restoration, (2) X-Ray, prior to restoration Oil on canvas, 83 x 64,5 cm, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister Dresden, inv.no. 1336, Dresden, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Photo: Herbert Boswank; (2) Dresden, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden und Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco, Photo: Wolfgang Kreische

The X-ray shows the large roemer glass, its base studded with berry-shaped prunts, entwined with scrolling vines in the right foreground of the picture.

Johannes Vermeer, Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, c. 1657-1659, (1) after the restoration; (2) Infrared reflectography prior to restoration Oil on canvas, 83 x 64,5 cm, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister Dresden, inv.no. 1336, (1) Dresden, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Photos: Herbert Boswank, (2) Konstanze Krüger and Christoph Schölzel

In the infrared reflectography image, the outline of a lion’s head can be seen on the table to the left of the curtain, like the ones decorating the Spanish chair in the corner of the room. The original outlines of the turned figure of the girl are also visible.

Learning from his fellow artists

Vermeer developed his painting style by appropriating ideas from the works of his contemporaries. By the end of the 1650s, when he turned to intimate works of genre painting, he had found the real focus of his art. The Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window exemplifies this development.

(1) Johannes Vermeer, Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, c. 1657-1659; (2) Gerard Houckgeest, Interior of the Oude Kerk in Delft, 1654 (1) Oil on canvas, 83 x 64,5 cm, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister Dresden, inv.no. 1336, Dresden, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Photo: Wolfgang Kreische; (2) Oil on panel, 49 x 41 cm, Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum, purchased with the support of the Vereniging Rembrandt, inv.no. SK-A-1584, Amsterdam, © Rijksmuseum, Photo: Frans Pegt

Vermeer’s decision to include the curtain demonstrates his interest in Delft architectural painting. He was particularly impressed by the depictions of church interiors by Gerard Houckgeest and Hendrick van Vliet, which incorporated deceptively realistic green curtains painted in front of the pictorial space beyond. Vermeer adopted this illusionistic motif. In his painting, however, it is difficult to distinguish between the space of the picture and that of the viewer.

(1) Johannes Vermeer, Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, c. 1657-1659; (2) Frans van Mieris, Lady at a Harpsichord, 1658 (1) Oil on canvas, 83 x 64,5 cm, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister Dresden, inv.no. 1336, Dresden, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Photo: Wolfgang Kreische; (2) Oil on panel, 31.6 x 24.9 cm, Schwerin, Staatliche Schlösser, Gärten und Kunstsammlungen Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Staatliches Museum, inv.no. G 82 © Staatliche Schlösser, Gärten und Kunstsammlungen Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Photo: Elke Walford

In choosing to depict a single standing figure, Vermeer was inspired by, among other things, the early genre paintings of the Leiden artist Frans van Mieris. The latter’s graceful, elegant female figures, for example the Woman at a Harpsichord, has an affinity to Vermeer’s figure of the Girl Reading a Letter, which was painted at about the same time.

(1) Johannes Vermeer, Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, c. 1657-1659; (2) Caesar van Everdingen, Cupid Holding a Glass Orb, c. 1655-1660 (1)Oil on canvas, 83 x 64,5 cm, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister Dresden, inv.no. 1336, Dresden, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Photo: Wolfgang Kreische; (2) Oil on canvas, 88.5 x 102 cm, Private collection, Courtesy Städel Museum , © Private collection, Photo: Horst Ziegenfuß

The appearance of the painting that served Vermeer as a model for his Cupid picture-within-the-picture is unknown. He probably based it on a work of art by a classicist artist. It may well have resembled Caesar van Everdingen’s Cupid Holding a Glass Orb.

On Reflection

Johannes Vermeer, Woman Holding a Balance, c. 1664 Oil on canvas, 39.7 x 35.5 cm, Washington, National Gallery of Art, Widener Collection, inv.no. 1942.9.97, Washington, © National Gallery of Art

Genre scenes with a single female figure make up an important part of Vermeer’s oeuvre. They captivate with their balanced composition, atmospheric lighting, and vibrant colours. The women are occupied with everyday things. Yet their inner calm and spirituality turn their depiction into something symbolic and existential. This distinguishes Vermeer’s genre painting from the more narrative images produced by his contemporaries.

The recent uncovering of the background picture in Vermeer’s Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window has brought the painting’s symbolic content to light again. The motif of the Cupid with his foot on a mask derives from an engraving in an emblem book. Vermeer’s contemporaries would have associated the Girl Reading a Letter with the maxim accompanying the engraving: "In love nothing is insincere, nothing is feigned."

Johannes Vermeer, Woman with a Pearl Necklace, c. 1662-1665 Oil on canvas, 56.1. x 47.4 cm, Berlin, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin – Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Gemäldegalerie, inv.no. 912B © Staatliche Museen zu Berlin – Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Gemäldegalerie, Photo: Christoph Schmidt

While putting on her pearl necklace, the young woman’s gaze falls upon the mirror – and seems to linger for a moment. Through his painting, Vermeer lends this momentary action an air of permanence. The woman’s youthful, upright figure dressed in subtly balanced yellows, browns, and whites stands out against the light grey of the blank wall. Inspired by other artists, Vermeer chose a subject that was fashionable at the time, yet he far surpassed his contemporaries as regards the psychological clarity of his depiction.

Johannes Vermeer, Woman Holding a Balance, c. 1664 Oil on canvas, 39.7 x 35.5 cm, Washington, National Gallery of Art, Widener Collection, inv.no. 1942.9.97, Washington, © National Gallery of Art

Surrounded by subdued light, a young woman stands at a table on which pearl necklaces and gold coins are spread out. With an air of calm concentration, she seems to be balancing the empty scales she holds in her right hand. As a painting within the painting, Vermeer has placed an adaption of an older Flemish painting of the Last Judgement on the rear wall. The figure of this serene, self-composed woman is an expression of contemplation on the balance between worldly, transient riches and spiritual values.

Religion in the Netherlands

The situation regarding religion in the Netherlands was the result of political and religious conflicts dating back to the 16th century. The struggle of the Protestant northern provinces against the power of the Catholic Habsburgs in the south led to territorial and religious division. As a result, a degree of religious tolerance developed in the United Provinces in the north that was unique in Europe; different Protestant groups and faith communities coexisted. From all over Europe, persecuted Protestants, Jews, and Huguenots migrated to the Northern Netherlands. Mennonites and Anabaptists existed alongside the dominant Calvinist Reformed Church. On the other hand, members of the Catholic Church, which also continued to exist in the north, were severely restricted in their religious practices, and public worship was forbidden.

The whole world in one picture

Johannes Vermeer, Woman in Blue Reading a Letter, c. 1663 Oil on canvas, 46.5 x 39 cm, Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum, bequest of A. van der Hoop, inv.no. SK-C-251, Amsterdam, © Rijksmuseum, Photo: Carola van Wijk

Vermeer’s Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window is surrounded by exotic and luxurious objects. The middle and upper bourgeoisie in Holland attached great importance to stylish furnishings that demonstrated a cosmopolitan mindset. Long-distance and maritime trade throughout Europe, and with Turkey, China, and the Far East, provided a rich supply of foreign goods of all kinds. In the final analysis, it was only an elite that benefited from the business of Dutch merchants, which – for example in Asia – was conducted on the backs of the unsuspecting colonised population.

The Dutch economic miracle

In the late sixteenth century, the northern provinces of the Netherlands began their unprecedented rise to become a leading economic power. The port and warehouse city of Amsterdam developed into Europe’s most important trading centre. The establishment of the United East India Company and United West India Company boosted Dutch maritime trade at the beginning of the seventeenth century. Dutch merchant ships bringing goods from four continents to the Netherlands soon dominated the world’s oceans. In addition to a large stock exchange, Amsterdam operated a central bank, which regulated international payments. A sound tax and financial system made the United Provinces and its companies sought-after business partners worldwide. The well above-average prosperity of broad strata of the Dutch population contributed to the flourishing of science and art in the so-called Golden Age.

Wallerant Vaillant, Board with Letters, Quill Knife, and Quill behind Red Ribbon, 1658 Oil on paper, on canvas, 51.5 x 40.5 cm, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, inv.no. 1232, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Photo: Elke Estel/ Hans-Peter Klut

Letters connect

For the Dutch in the seventeenth century, writing and exchanging letters provided an opening to the world. For a trading nation, whose male inhabitants were often on the move for years at a time, correspondence was one of the prerequisites for a flourishing economy and a functioning community. Writing letters became a widespread fashion. Printed letter writing manuals, which contained sample letters for a wide range of occasions, were often used for this purpose.

Gerard Ter Borch, Woman Writing a Letter, c. 1655 Oil on panel, 38.3 x 27.9 cm, The Hague, Mauritshuis, Gift of Sir Henri W.A. Deterding, inv.no. 797, The Hague, © Mauritshuis, Photo: Margareta Svensson
Gerard ter Borch created numerous paintings depicting people writing and reading, thereby influencing the genre for an entire generation of artists. Produced around 1655, this intimate little painting is the first known depiction of a woman writing a letter in Dutch genre painting. It shows Gesina, the painter’s sister, carefully finishing a letter with a subtle smile on her face.

Gabriel Metsu, Man Writing a Letter, 1664-1666 Oil on panel, 52.5 x 40.2 cm, Dublin, National Gallery of Ireland, inv.no. NGI.4536, Dublin, © National Gallery of Ireland, Photo: Roy Hewson
A young gentleman sits at a table in an elegant pose, writing a letter. In his richly furnished room, he is surrounded by objects signifying faraway places: a Persian carpet lies on the table, a globe is visible through the window pane, the picture on the wall shows an Italianate landscape. While writing, he seems to be completely focused on the absent recipient of his lines.

Gabriel Metsu, Woman Reading a Letter, 1664-1666 Oil on panel, 52.5 x 40.2 cm, Dublin, National Gallery of Ireland, inv.no. NGI.4537, Dublin, © National Gallery of Ireland, Photo: Roy Hewson
The companion pieces *Woman Reading a Letter* and Man Writing a Letter are closely related to Vermeer’s paintings in terms of motif and style. The central theme of the image is the reading of a letter. The elegantly dressed young woman has interrupted her needlework in order to read the letter. The maid is uncovering the picture on the wall, revealing it to the viewer. It depicts a ship in a troubled sea – a reference to the turbulence inherent in the sea as well as in love.

Gerard ter Borch created numerous paintings depicting people writing and reading, thereby influencing the genre for an entire generation of artists. Produced around 1655, this intimate little painting is the first known depiction of a woman writing a letter in Dutch genre painting. It shows Gesina, the painter’s sister, carefully finishing a letter with a subtle smile on her face.

Science in the service of trade

In the seventeenth-century Northern Netherlands, there was an atmosphere of great openness towards all branches of science. Scholars from many parts of Europe published their writings there or taught at one of the many universities. Pioneering new discoveries in the natural sciences, medicine and biology, astronomy, geography and optics, created the basis for spectacular inventions and practical innovations in Dutch society. Learned academics like Christiaan Huygens and versatile practitioners like Antoni van Leeuwenhoek were members of elite intellectual circles with international connections. The long-distance and maritime trade contributed to the broadening of horizons by bringing new knowledge about distant regions of the world and their flora and fauna.

Twice Vermeer placed the figure of a young scientist at the focal point of a painting: these were The Geographer and The Astronomer (Paris, Louvre, 1668), which were conceived as counterparts and were probably painted on commission. The natural sciences, especially cartography and astronomy, were particularly important for a seafaring nation like the Netherlands. Vermeer’s geographer, pausing in a moment of contemplation, represents a modern archetype of youthful, intellectual and at the same time cosmopolitan explorer.

Johannes Vermeer, The Geographer, 1669 Oil on canvas, 53 x 46.6 cm, Frankfurt am Main, Städel Museum, inv.no.1149 © Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main

The language of images

Johannes Vermeer, A Young Woman Standing at a Virginal, c. 1670-1672 Oil on canvas, 51.7 x 45.2 cm, London, The National Gallery, inv.no. NG1383, London, © National Gallery

At first glance, seventeenth-century Dutch genre paintings give the impression of being realistic depictions of scenes from everyday life. This impression is false. The painters created artfully composed ideal images in the studio, incorporating numerous authentic details that were intended to simulate reality. They used representations that appeared true to life to communicate certain ideas, to issue warnings or admonitions. In order to infuse a seemingly everyday scene with a hidden message – of an instructive nature, for example – the painters made use of camouflage and concealment. To read the deeper meaning out of these pictures was considered a challenge and a pleasure in the seventeenth century.

Pictures of all kinds can be found on the walls of the numerous interior scenes. In the seventeenth century, they were part of the standard furnishings of middle- and upper-class Dutch households. The reason for their presence often lies, apart from their purely decorative purpose, in a calculated pictorial language that was universally understood at the time: the picture within the picture was added as a commentary on the main scene of the painting and influenced the perception of the work as a whole. Johannes Vermeer also made use of this artistic device.

In four of his works, Vermeer refers directly to the theme of love by incorporating Cupid, the god of love, into the compositions as a painting within the painting. The motif derives from a popular emblem book by Otto van Veen. As in the painting Girl Reading a Letter at the Open Window, the emblem entitled Inconcussa Fide shows Cupid treading on a mask lying on the ground: True love demands sincerity, it alone can overcome hypocrisy and deception.

Cornelis Boel, Inconcussa fide (Oprecht) [28] (in: Otto van Veen, Amorum emblemata, Antwerp 1608) engraving, 20.2 x 15.1 cm, Dresden, Sächsische Landesbibliothek – Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek, sign. Art.plast 1176, Dresden, © Sächsische Landesbibliothek – Staats und Universitätsbibliothek / Deutsche Fotothek, Photo: Lydia Pokoj

For a moment, the young woman’s attention has been diverted away from making music with her companion; instead, her gaze is turned directly towards us. The painting of Cupid on the wall in the background shows that the concern of the gentleman standing next to her goes beyond mere music-making: he hopes that the harmony of the music might lead to a consonance of hearts.

Johannes Vermeer, Girl Interrupted at Her Music, c. 1658/59 Oil on canvas, 39.4 x 44.5 cm, New York, The Frick Collection, Henry Clay Frick Bequest, inv.no. 1901.1.125, New York, © The Frick Collection, Photo: Michael Bodycomb

The Young Lady Standing at a Virginal, a popular keyboard instrument of the period, has turned her head towards her partner, whose arrival she evidently expected. The painting of the young Cupid hangs prominently on the wall behind her. The symbolism of the image is unmistakable: Love can belong only to the one whose heart unites with hers in musical harmony. The landscape on the instrument's lid, however, adds a warning: the path of virtue is stony.

Oh, Mistress Mine William Byrd (um 1543–1623)

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Musician: Michael Tsalka, Instrument: Double-Virginal after Johannes Ruckers (1623), Original at the stock of the Landesmuseums Stuttgart, builder: Christian Fuchs, Frankfurt a. M.

Emblem literature in the Netherlands

Contemporary literary writings and prints served as important aids for the interpretation of hidden messages in Dutch genre paintings. Emblem books, a special literary form, brought together images and texts, usually arranged according to themes. They were usually in three parts and consisted of a motto, which stood above the image and set the theme, and an epigram explaining the image and motto, usually written in verse. Knowledge of emblem literature was of key importance for deciphering veiled pictorial symbols. The most famous and popular emblem books of Vermeer's time were by Otto van Veen (Amorum emblemata, 1608), Daniel Heinsius (Ambacht van Cupido, 1615) and Jacob Cats (Sinne - en minnebeelden, 1627).

Gabriel Metsu, The Hunter’s Present, c. 1658-1661 Oil on canvas, 51 x 48 cm, Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum, loan by the city of Amsterdam (bequest of A. van der Hoop), inv.no. SK-C-177, Amsterdam, © Rijksmuseum, Photo: Frans Pegt
The offer made by the hunter in presenting a dead partridge to a young lady has dubious connotations. The scene would easily have been recognised by Metsu’s contemporaries as an invitation for sex, since the Dutch term *vogelen* (literally ‘to bird’) was slang for sexual intercourse, and a lover was called *vogelaar* (fowler). The loaded gun on the floor reinforces this interpretation, while the small Cupid figure on the cabinet conjures thoughts of love. The woman, however, remains vague: while looking at the bird with interest, her hand reaches for the prayer book.

Pieter Cornelisz. van Slingelandt, Lady Singing at a Virginal, c. 1670-1680 Oil on panel, 32.5 x 26 cm, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, inv.no. 1763, Dresden, © Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Photo: Elke Estel
The elegantly dressed young singer, wearing an exotic feather headdress, has taken up her position beside an open harpsichord as she awaits her musical companion. The open music book and the raised hand show that she is about to start singing. The close association between music and love is a recurring theme in seventeenth-century literature and painting. The conspicuous feathers, however, give the scene negative overtones; they smack of unchastity and sin.

Frans van Mieris, The Oyster Meal, 1661 Oil on panel, 27.6 x 20.8 cm, The Hague, Mauritshuis, Gift of Sir Henri W.A. Deterding, inv.no. 819, The Hague, © Mauritshuis, Photo: Margareta Svensson
Here Frans van Mieris depicts the intimate relationship between a woman and a man in a very personal context: it is the painter and his seductively dressed wife Cunera van der Cock themselves who are casting glances of love at each other. The offering of oysters on a silver tray adds a hint of eroticism because eating shellfish, an aphrodisiac, was regarded as a symbol of carnal love.

The offer made by the hunter in presenting a dead partridge to a young lady has dubious connotations. The scene would easily have been recognised by Metsu’s contemporaries as an invitation for sex, since the Dutch term vogelen (literally ‘to bird’) was slang for sexual intercourse, and a lover was called vogelaar (fowler). The loaded gun on the floor reinforces this interpretation, while the small Cupid figure on the cabinet conjures thoughts of love. The woman, however, remains vague: while looking at the bird with interest, her hand reaches for the prayer book.

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Johannes Vermeer. On Reflection

Intro

Vermeer On Reflection 10.9.2021–2.1.20222021GemäldegalerieAlte Meister

Delft

Delft A splendid city

Knowledge creates prosperity

Delft – a place of learning

"Sphinx of Delft?"

Johannes Vermeer The "Sphinx of Delft"?

On the way to genius

Vermeer teaches himself

Painting Technique

Light, Space and Structure Vermeer’s Painting Technique

Vermeer and perspective

Restoration

Restoration of a masterpiece

Millimetre by millimetre - a Cupid is uncovered

The Cupid is painted over

Vermeer experiments

Learning from his fellow artists

On Reflection

On Reflection

Religion in the Netherlands

The whole world in one picture

The whole world in one picture

The Dutch economic miracle

Letters connect

Science in the service of trade

The language of images

The language of images

Oh, Mistress Mine William Byrd (um 1543–1623)

Emblem literature in the Netherlands

Vermeer On Reflection 10.9.2021
–2.1.2022
2021
Gemäldegalerie
Alte Meister