I love a good mystery...and the life and art of JOHANNES
VERMEER aka Jan Vermeer is a captivating mystery.
As many art lovers will agree, interpretation is emotional, controversial and fulfilling to the beholder. We all see and feel different things in art. However, we are lucky to know many details about some of the "greats" in art history.
However, little is known about JOHANNES VERMEER'S life. As a matter of fact, his works were relatively unknown and forgotten for almost two hundred years before they were brought to the public eye by Thore Burger in 1866.
JOHANNES VERMEER lived in the last part of the "Dutch Golden Age." A 100 year time-span, the Dutch Golden Age brought theNetherlands
VERMEER lived in a glorious time in theNetherlands
Rembrandt may be one of the most famous names that we may associate with this time period and Dutch painters. And while we may know mountains of information about Rembrandt, and he may be touted as one of the most influential in Dutch as well as European art history, I think there is something to be said for the artist that may have quietly remained in the shadows of Rembrandt's glory.
But lets not forget that we are discussing JOHANNES VERMEER! In the midst of all this wealth, it seems that VERMEER was never particularly wealthy. This may be because he produced few paintings during his life-time. Only 35 paintings that we know are attributed to VERMEER'S career. Sadly, as we've mentioned, it wasn't until years later that VERMEER'S reputation grew into what has acclaimed him as one of the greatest painters of the Dutch Golden Age. And oddly enough, we don't even know if his path crossed with Rembrandt as the artist VERMEER studied under is unknown and his entire life was lived out it Delft.
One of what is known to be of his first paintings is called "The Procuress" of 1656. This is a racy little painting that delves right in to the "real life" scenarios of the day and age.
And this is what VERMEER is known for. His paintings while considered to be part of the "baroque" movement, stood out in that they didn't necessarily exemplify the common fairy-tale kind of drama and grandeur of such paintings, but expressed everyday, real life scenes with amazing detail, feeling and accuracy. It seems when looking at one of his paintings that one could walk right into the painting or the subject could walk right off the canvas. Once again, in VERMEER, we find an artist that didn't conform, but was able to adapt his art to something that could be felt and related to.
He inherited a position as an art dealer in the St. Luke's Guild from his father. The love of art continued in the blood lines as it is said that some of the painting that were originally thought to be his were in fact his daughter's.
I think it interesting to note that he died at fairly young age - 43. He left no money for his wife and 11 children. It is said that his passing was abrupt and considered by some to be of the odd nature. It was not determined if he was ill, had an infection, an epileptic fit, or maybe was severely melancholy and depressed; drinking himself into a state of hopelessness or possibly liver failure.
The question lingers: Was his failure to provide for his large household or his failure to paint and become prominent the reason for drinking at a local establishment and then characteristically the result of change in the control of the technique he used to paint? Whatever the cause, some of his later works of art were different. The brush strokes that were once clean and defined became uncharacteristically coarse.
So we find that we are once again at a point of discussing the mental and emotional state of yet another great artist. There are several points that could be made.
1. One could draw the conclusion that grave emotional drama creates passion, and passion feeds the artist.
2. However, on the other side of the coin, one could argue that the passion creates the drama and the drama is revealed in the artists creations.
3. And yet, we could draw another conclusion and that would be that a touch of insanity dwells within an artist, screaming to be released. Whether released or not, the insanity will always win....it is just a matter of how long before it takes over and what can be harnessed from it in the meantime.
A discussion of his paintings:
If you aren't inclined to talk about any of the above noted thoughts of the severity of the artists life...maybe we can talk about one of his well known paintings:
"Girl with a pearl earring" - Known as the Mona Lisa of the North.
This painting is striking and yet little is known about it. Who is the girl? We can assume a pheasant. But...why does she wear a pearl?
It is important to note that at this time, pearls were extremely expensive and denoted great wealth. Therefore it would have been quite unlikely that a pheasant would have owned a pearl of this size. Therefore it is puzzling.
I wonder about this pearl and the combo of a pheasant girl and the use of such a valuable....by worldly standards...PEARL. What was VERMEER trying to convey by picturing both?
The maiden's stare is one of sincerity and natural beauty that becomes her, yet the pearl stands out. Was it real? Most likely not. It was popular to make synthetic pearls at the time. But still was there a message in the combination of plain and extravagant? Was this VERMEERS way of showing that the beauty of everyday life could out do that of riches? Was the pearl so valuable that it overtook the beauty of this maiden? I say ...No! The timeless gaze of the maiden is captivating.
This is what I personally like most about VERMEER'S paintings. They capture real life, in the plain and simple reality of it, yet it seems so captivating and beautiful! SO REAL!
VERMEER was artist! As is evident, art was a way of life for him. Come poverty for himself and family, he maintained a passion. His work was one of GREAT detail. His paintings so alive that while gazing upon a canvas, one would not be surprised if the subject nodded a hello or blushed at your gaze.
Do you believe that the passion of art forgoes all else? Would you sacrifice health, and sustenance for you passions? Can there be any greater goal than to live our lives and know such passion in one form or another?
As many art lovers will agree, interpretation is emotional, controversial and fulfilling to the beholder. We all see and feel different things in art. However, we are lucky to know many details about some of the "greats" in art history.
However, little is known about JOHANNES VERMEER'S life. As a matter of fact, his works were relatively unknown and forgotten for almost two hundred years before they were brought to the public eye by Thore Burger in 1866.
JOHANNES VERMEER lived in the last part of the "Dutch Golden Age." A 100 year time-span, the Dutch Golden Age brought the
VERMEER lived in a glorious time in the
Rembrandt may be one of the most famous names that we may associate with this time period and Dutch painters. And while we may know mountains of information about Rembrandt, and he may be touted as one of the most influential in Dutch as well as European art history, I think there is something to be said for the artist that may have quietly remained in the shadows of Rembrandt's glory.
But lets not forget that we are discussing JOHANNES VERMEER! In the midst of all this wealth, it seems that VERMEER was never particularly wealthy. This may be because he produced few paintings during his life-time. Only 35 paintings that we know are attributed to VERMEER'S career. Sadly, as we've mentioned, it wasn't until years later that VERMEER'S reputation grew into what has acclaimed him as one of the greatest painters of the Dutch Golden Age. And oddly enough, we don't even know if his path crossed with Rembrandt as the artist VERMEER studied under is unknown and his entire life was lived out it Delft.
One of what is known to be of his first paintings is called "The Procuress" of 1656. This is a racy little painting that delves right in to the "real life" scenarios of the day and age.
And this is what VERMEER is known for. His paintings while considered to be part of the "baroque" movement, stood out in that they didn't necessarily exemplify the common fairy-tale kind of drama and grandeur of such paintings, but expressed everyday, real life scenes with amazing detail, feeling and accuracy. It seems when looking at one of his paintings that one could walk right into the painting or the subject could walk right off the canvas. Once again, in VERMEER, we find an artist that didn't conform, but was able to adapt his art to something that could be felt and related to.
He inherited a position as an art dealer in the St. Luke's Guild from his father. The love of art continued in the blood lines as it is said that some of the painting that were originally thought to be his were in fact his daughter's.
I think it interesting to note that he died at fairly young age - 43. He left no money for his wife and 11 children. It is said that his passing was abrupt and considered by some to be of the odd nature. It was not determined if he was ill, had an infection, an epileptic fit, or maybe was severely melancholy and depressed; drinking himself into a state of hopelessness or possibly liver failure.
The question lingers: Was his failure to provide for his large household or his failure to paint and become prominent the reason for drinking at a local establishment and then characteristically the result of change in the control of the technique he used to paint? Whatever the cause, some of his later works of art were different. The brush strokes that were once clean and defined became uncharacteristically coarse.
So we find that we are once again at a point of discussing the mental and emotional state of yet another great artist. There are several points that could be made.
1. One could draw the conclusion that grave emotional drama creates passion, and passion feeds the artist.
2. However, on the other side of the coin, one could argue that the passion creates the drama and the drama is revealed in the artists creations.
3. And yet, we could draw another conclusion and that would be that a touch of insanity dwells within an artist, screaming to be released. Whether released or not, the insanity will always win....it is just a matter of how long before it takes over and what can be harnessed from it in the meantime.
A discussion of his paintings:
If you aren't inclined to talk about any of the above noted thoughts of the severity of the artists life...maybe we can talk about one of his well known paintings:
"Girl with a pearl earring" - Known as the Mona Lisa of the North.
This painting is striking and yet little is known about it. Who is the girl? We can assume a pheasant. But...why does she wear a pearl?
It is important to note that at this time, pearls were extremely expensive and denoted great wealth. Therefore it would have been quite unlikely that a pheasant would have owned a pearl of this size. Therefore it is puzzling.
I wonder about this pearl and the combo of a pheasant girl and the use of such a valuable....by worldly standards...PEARL. What was VERMEER trying to convey by picturing both?
The maiden's stare is one of sincerity and natural beauty that becomes her, yet the pearl stands out. Was it real? Most likely not. It was popular to make synthetic pearls at the time. But still was there a message in the combination of plain and extravagant? Was this VERMEERS way of showing that the beauty of everyday life could out do that of riches? Was the pearl so valuable that it overtook the beauty of this maiden? I say ...No! The timeless gaze of the maiden is captivating.
This is what I personally like most about VERMEER'S paintings. They capture real life, in the plain and simple reality of it, yet it seems so captivating and beautiful! SO REAL!
VERMEER was artist! As is evident, art was a way of life for him. Come poverty for himself and family, he maintained a passion. His work was one of GREAT detail. His paintings so alive that while gazing upon a canvas, one would not be surprised if the subject nodded a hello or blushed at your gaze.
Do you believe that the passion of art forgoes all else? Would you sacrifice health, and sustenance for you passions? Can there be any greater goal than to live our lives and know such passion in one form or another?
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