Day 391 - Vermeer and ter Borch

 




December 28, 2024

Gallery 613 dealt with the outdoors, so perhaps it's inevitable that Gallery 614 focuses on interiors.  Helpful introductory signage explains that during a period of economic prosperity,  wealthy burghers came to emulate the behavior of aristocrats. "High-life" genre paintings depicted amorous encounters and elevated pursuits,such as music-making.

The gallery houses five Vermeers - that is, almost one-seventh of all the Vermeers known in the world! Some of these are famous, including "Young Woman with a Lute," "Young Woman with a Water Pitcher," and "Study of a Young Woman."  But two paintings were previously unknown to me. One, to my surprise, is an allegorical painting that depicts the Catholic faith as a young woman, her foot atop a globe to symbolize the religion's dominion over the entire world,  while in the foreground the cornerstone of a church crushes evil, represented, natch, as a snake. I never knew that Vermeer converted to Catholicism upon his marriage - perhaps a courageous move, because at that time the Dutch Republic banned public celebration of the Mass. It strikes me as ironic that during this period the  Dutch were more tolerant of Jews than of Catholics - but the latter were undoubtedly perceived as more of a threat.

I have to say that, while it sounds like heresy, I don't much like the fifth Vermeer painting, or rather, I like only half of it. Made around 1656-1657, measuring roughly 42 inches high and 36 inches wide, and entitled "A Maid Asleep," it shows a young girl sitting asleep at a table, her right hand against her cheek. I very much like the way Vermeer has captured the pattern of the Oriental fabric on the table, the blue and white ceramic bowl containing fruit, and the metal-topped jug. But all these elements are shoehorned into the left side of the painting; the right side seems too bare and devoid of interest. According to the wall sign, X-rays indicate that Vermeer painted out a male figure originally standing in the doorway. I wonder whether that would have made the picture feel more balanced to me.

There are also aspects of Gerard ter Borch's painting,  called "Curiosity," that I 'm not wild about.  The work, executed around 1660-1662,  portrays three women gathered around a desk. One is writing a letter, while another looks over her shoulder and a third gazes out into space. The painting is fairly small in format (I'd guess about 32 inches high and 24 inches wide), the decor of the surrounding room seems grand, and the women a bit lost in the vast space,  But oh, how ter Borch could paint textures - the lustrous satin skirt of the standing figure on the left, the lush velvet of the dark green table covering. And most of all, the silky, fluffy black and white coat of the little dog sitting on a chair overseeing the proceedings. I want to reach out and pat him.






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