Jan Vermeer (1632-1675)
A MASTER OF LIGHT
Johannes (Jan) Vermeer was born in 1632 in Delft, Holland, where he also spent most of his life. He married Catharina Bolnes in 1653, with whom he had 15 children. He is believed to have enjoyed a happy home life, despite an antagonistic relationship with his live-in mother-in-law.
Vermeer’s compositions, rendered with geometrical precision, exemplify repoussoir (French for “to push back”), a technique used to give the illusion of depth by situating large objects or figures in the foreground. Vermeer’s art hails from the Delft School, which is characterized by scenes of calm, peaceful domesticity—much like the village itself. His exquisite use of color and light, and his attention to textures and fabrics, further augment his thoughtful representations of daily life, which often captured subjects seemingly engaged in moments of quiet reflection. Facial expressions are frequently contemplative, ambiguous, or suggestive, and viewers of a particular work may feel as though they have stumbled on a deeply private moment. Some scholars believe that Catharina was the subject of Woman in Blue Reading a Letter, although there is no solid evidence to support this.
While Vermeer enjoyed prosperity for a time, he ultimately fell victim to the perilous economy surrounding the French Invasion of 1672 and died penniless. Today he remains a revered master; his 36 surviving paintings are exhibited in museums around the world. —RJR
Notable works: The Milkmaid, 1658-60 (page 182); Girl with a Pearl Earring, 1665; The Art of Painting, 1666-1673.
FUN FACT
Vermeer’s deft renderings of textures and fabrics in his paintings may have come from observing his father, whose trade was in textiles.