Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Johannes Vermeer
(1632-1675)
The great Golden Age painter Johannes Vermeer was born
in Delft, grew up near Market Square, and set a number of
his paintings here. His father, an art dealer, gave Johannes a
passion for painting. Late in the artist's career, with Holland
fighting draining wars against England, the demand for art
and luxuries went sour in the Netherlands, forcing Vermeer
to downsize—he sold his big home, packed up his wife and 14
children, and moved in with his mother-in-law. He died two
years later.
Vermeer painted some 37 surviving works (though
experts debate whether all of them were actually his).
Although Vermeer painted landscapes and scenes from
mythology and the Bible, he specialized in depicting the
everyday actions of regular people. While his scenes are usu-
ally still and peaceful, he artfully conveys deep tension, and
suggests a complicated story with subtle body language (the
subject glances at something out of view) or the inclusion
of a small item (a letter that seems pregnant with signifi-
cance). Vermeer was also a master of light, capturing it with
an artistry that would make the Impressionists jealous two
centuries later.
After centuries of relative obscurity—we still know very
little about him—Vermeer and his paintings are now much
appreciated. Delft owns none of his works (you'll have to
visit Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum, with four masterpieces—see
page 113; or The Hague's Mauritshuis museum—see page 251).
However, the town's new Vermeer Center pays tribute to the
talent of this great artist.
why today's Dutch wear orange to soccer matches and consider it
their national color.
If you want to work off your
pannenkoeken,
you can climb the
New Church's
tower
(€2.70, three levels and 376 steps, last entry
one hour before church closes, may close in bad weather).
A few blocks away, listing over a canal as if it's about to tip
in, is the
Old Church
(Oude Kerk). Although smaller and less
impressive (inside and out) than the New Church, this church feels
more lived-in. Light filters through stained-glass windows, fall-
ing on the tombs of two local boys done good: Johannes Vermeer
and Anton van Leuwenhoek (who invented the microscope, then
used it to discover bacteria). Vermeer usually wins the “most flow-
ers” award...tulips, of course. Aside from these talented bones, the
church is as dead as its residents.
s
Vermeer Center (Vermeercentrum)
—While it doesn't have
any Vermeer originals, this intelligent new exhibit does a fine job
