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- 1660 )]]

Johannes Vermeer or '''Jan Vermeer''' ( October 31 , 1632 - buried on December 15 , 1675 ) was a Dutch Painter , who lived and worked in Delft . He is also sometimes referred to as ''Vermeer of Delft'' or ''Johannes van der Meer''. Alongside Rembrandt , Vermeer is the best known painter of the Dutch Golden Age , and his paintings are admired for their transparent colours, careful composition, and brilliant use of light. Although his choice of subject matter, colors, and composition was similar to that of certain contemporaries (especially Pieter De Hooch ), Vermeer acheived a timeless, monumental quality in his paintings that places it on a level all its own. His total production was extremely small by the standards of the time, perhaps 50 paintings in all, of which approximately 35 have survived. His current reputation is a recent phenomenon; all but forgotten, he was "rediscovered" by the French writer, critic, and activist Thore-Burger in the mid-19th Century, and his stature has been on the ascent ever since.

TECHNIQUE

Vermeer produced transparent colours by adding the paint onto the canvas in loosely granular layers, a technique called '' Pointillé '' (not to be confused with Pointillism ). David Hockney , among other historians, has speculated that Vermeer possibly used a Camera Obscura to achieve precise positioning in his compositions, and this view seems to be supported by certain light and perspective effects which would be the result of lenses and not the naked eye; however, the issue is disputed by many other historians.


THEMES

Vermeer painted mostly domestic interior scenes, and even his two known landscapes are framed with a window. His works are largely Genre Pieces and portraits, with the exception of two cityscapes.

His paintings cover all layers of society, at one time portraying a simple milkmaid at work, at other times works show the luxury and splendour of rich notables and merchantmen in their roomy houses. Religious and scientific connotations can be found in his works.


INFLUENCE OF OTHER PAINTERS

  • Carel Fabritius ( 1622 – 1654 ) who spent his final years in Delft. Vermeer's ideas about perspective, and his tendency to paint everyday themes were possibly influenced by Fabritius.

  • Italian painter Caravaggio ( 1573 – 1610 ), indirectly through Dutch followers.

  • Leonart Bramer , another painter from Delft, and witness to his marriage.

  • Vermeer owned a Dirk Van Baburen painting, which appears in two of Vermeer's paintings.



WORKS


Today, 34 or 37 paintings are clearly attributed to Vermeer, although in 1866, Thoré Burger attributed a list of 66 pictures to him. The known paintings are:


FORGERIES

Han Van Meegeren ( 1889 – 1947 ) was a Dutch painter who worked in the classic tradition. Originally to prove that critics were wrong about his qualities as a painter, he decided to paint a fake Vermeer. Later, he forged more Vermeers and works of other painters, to make money. Van Meegeren fooled the art establishment, and was only taken seriously after demonstrating his skills in front of police witnesses. His aptitude at forgery shocked the art world and hence made it even more difficult to assess the authenticity of works attributed to Vermeer.


VERMEER IN OTHER WORKS



HOLLYWOOD MOVIE


Girl with a Pearl Earing

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