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Welcome to Great Art.
For the past few years,
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we've been filming
the biggest exhibitions,
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art galleries and museums
in the world
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about some of the greatest artists
and art in history.
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Not only do we record
landmark shows,
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but we also secure privileged access
behind the scenes.
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We then use this as a springboard
to take a broader look
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at extraordinary artists.
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A few years ago
in our series, Exhibition On Screen,
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we brought to the cinema
a fascinating show from
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the National Gallery,
here in London.
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Entitled Vermeer And Music:
The Art of Love And Leisure,
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it explored the serene genius
of Johannes Vermeer
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by focusing on
the musical references in his art
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in order to understand
his broader place in
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the celebrated period in art history
known as the Dutch Golden Age.
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It wasn't
a particularly large exhibition,
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but, as we'll discover,
Vermeer paintings are rare
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and so any exhibition of his work
tends to be a momentous occasion.
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And now, here in our Great Art film,
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we once again delve deep
into the show
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and go beyond the gallery walls
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to explore his life and art
more fully.
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And in doing so, we throw light
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on some of the most
exquisite paintings
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in the whole history of art.
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For Vermeer
and his artistic contemporaries,
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music was a favourite subject.
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A means of conveying allegory
or innuendo,
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social status or romantic encounter,
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the depiction of music in art
carried a diverse range of meaning.
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But artists also sought
to communicate something
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of the power and beauty
of music itself,
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to capture the essence
of one art-form by means of another.
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Gathered in a series
of elegantly designed rooms,
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the exhibition draws
on the best examples
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from the National Gallery's
impressive collection
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of Dutch painting
to explore this coming together
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of art and music in all
its different manifestations.
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Now, I'm joined by the exhibition's
curator, Betsy Wieseman,
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here at the very heart
of the exhibition
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in the room where
the five Vermeer paintings are.
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Betsy, what was the actual
starting point for this exhibition?
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The actual starting point
was the opportunity
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to have Vermeer's painting
of The Guitar Player
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on loan from Kenwood House
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while they are closed
for renovations to the building.
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It's a painting from
the last part of Vermeer's career,
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probably dating about 1670-72,
and in terms of the size, the scale,
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the subject matter,
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it fits perfectly with the gallery's
two paintings by Vermeer,
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both of which depict women
playing the Virginal.
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So we had three paintings
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from about the same period
in his career
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all with musical subjects,
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and I thought it would be
such a fantastic opportunity
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to show those together
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and to explore a little more
about music in Vermeer's paintings.
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Why is music
such a broadly popular subject
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in Dutch painting
in the 17th century,
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and why was Vermeer drawn to it?
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Well, I think many artists
were drawn to musical subjects,
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because music really pervaded life
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in the Netherlands
in the 17th century.
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I always have the sense that,
you know,
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you could walk out of your house
at any moment
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and somewhere, somehow,
hear some music.
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And, of course,
I think for so many people,
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it had such positive,
enjoyable connotations
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that artists wanted to record that
in paintings
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and also people wanted to enjoy
paintings of musical subjects.
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It's interesting because Vermeer
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is perceived
as such a harmonious painter,
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but is there any sense
in this exhibition in the way he...
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I was going to use the word
"confronts" music.
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That there is a confrontation
between art forms,
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or is it a fairly
symbiotic relationship,
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broadly speaking,
between music and painting?
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I think it's very symbiotic
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and I think with
his late paintings especially,
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there is an almost
synesthetic approach to them
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that you either hear the music,
or you hear, just as importantly,
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the silence in between
musical sounds.
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Yes, it's interesting.
I mean, space is to a painter,
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and certainly to a sculptor,
what silence is to a musician.
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Absolutely, and we see that
in Vermeer's paintings
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in those blank spaces of the walls
behind the figures.
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Other artists might've put in
another painting,
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or some sort of accessory
to fill the space,
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but Vermeer
is absolutely comfortable
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in that visual silence in
the background of his paintings.
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Now, Vermeer's one of
the most fascinating characters
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in European art,
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not just because of
the extraordinarily beautiful
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and enigmatically seductive
paintings that he produced,
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but also because, given his status
in European art history,
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relatively little
is known about him.
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NARRATOR: Johannes Vermeer was born
in Delft in Autumn 1632,
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the only son and second child
of Reynier and his wife, Digna.
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Reynier was by training
a silkworker,
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originally in Amsterdam,
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and then here in the smaller city
of Delft near the Dutch coast.
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Towards the end of the 1620s,
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Reynier had begun
dealing in paintings.
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Then, around 1630,
he had also turned to inn-keeping.
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Delft was one of
the wealthier cities
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in the province of Holland,
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prosperous due to
its thriving industries
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of tapestry weaving, brewing
and perhaps above all Delftware.
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Johannes's early years were spent
in the family hostelry,
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The Flying Fox,
on the Voldersgracht.
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His father's surname at this time
was Vos, meaning Fox.
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By 1640,
when Johannes was eight years old,
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the family name had changed,
for reasons that remain unclear,
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to Van der Meer, "from the lake",
contracted to Vermeer.
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At the same time,
his parents also gambled
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on the purchase
of a bigger, better inn.
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This was a pretty prominent inn
on the main square in Delft,
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so it would have been a place
that would have been frequented
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by the upper-class citizens.
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We know in the Netherlands
at that time,
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there was a great interest
in acquiring art.
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The numbers of paintings in
households was quite remarkable,
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and travellers from
different countries
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would come to the Netherlands
and they would say,
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"Even the butcher or the baker have
paintings hanging in their homes."
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And at some point,
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young Johannes decided
he didn't only want to admire art,
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or help his father sell it,
but to make it too.
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Johannes' father died in 1652,
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and Johannes was expected to run
the family business.
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Yet, after little more than a year,
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he was accepted into
the Guild of St Luke,
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a prerequisite to becoming
a working artist.
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Artists at this time
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were expected to undergo
an apprenticeship,
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usually of six years,
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with a master painter
who belonged to a guild.
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It was these guilds
that accredited artists
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and regulated their
commercial activities.
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Vermeer left behind no letters,
no account of his life,
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but it must have been here
that he learnt how to paint.
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To me, I think it's one of
the fascinating things
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that distinguishes Vermeer
from other artists,
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actually, in some fundamental ways.
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That he starts his career
not as a painter
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of interior genre scenes,
or a painter of views of Delft,
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or little streets,
or things like that,
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but as a history painter.
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So he starts painting large-scale
biblical mythological scenes.
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So for most people,
these paintings are anathema,
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they can't really figure them out,
why do they exist?
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I mean, why as... Christ in
the house of Mary and Martha,
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what does that have to do
with Vermeer?
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This is perhaps the earliest
surviving painting by Vermeer.
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It's certainly the largest
and quite possibly a commission.
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St Luke's Gospel tells
of Christ's visit
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to two sisters, Mary and Martha.
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Christ praised Mary's desire
to listen to his teachings,
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whereas Martha is shown
more concerned with daily chores.
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The treatment of light and
the characterisation of the subjects
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were probably inspired
by artists from Utrecht,
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who had in turn been influenced
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by the master
Italian painter, Caravaggio.
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Just over a year later,
Vermeer painted this, The Procuress.
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Few of Vermeer's paintings
are as provocative
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as this depiction of a prostitute
and her client,
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a conventional theme
in contemporary Dutch art.
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Here, the procuress
looks approvingly on,
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while a soldier offers a young woman
a coin while fondling her breast.
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Holding a glass of wine in one hand,
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she willingly accepts his money
with the other.
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On the left,
an elegant dandy dressed in a beret
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and a fashionable slit-sleeve jacket
smiles out at the viewer.
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This dimly-lit figure
is thought to be
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the only existing portrait
of Vermeer himself.
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This is Diana And Her Nymphs,
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another of the early known works,
painted when Johannes was 31 or 32.
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It's true that these mythological
and biblical scenes
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seem, at first glance,
far from the Vermeer we know.
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But look again,
the grainy textures,
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the serene female figures,
the dreamlike atmosphere.
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These paintings actually point up
what was to come
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rather more
than one might have thought.
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Painted when Vermeer
was in his early 30s,
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The Music Lesson depicts
a young woman playing a keyboard,
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as a male companion stands by,
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his parted lips suggesting
he may be singing.
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Though the pair are widely believed
to be a pupil and her teacher,
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Vermeer himself
didn't title the work,
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so the relationship between the two
is a matter of historic conjecture.
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The inscription
on the instrument reads,
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"Music is the companion of joy,
the medicine of sorrow",
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alluding both to music's
alleged curative properties,
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as well as to the fact
that love, like music,
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can be the source of both joy
and sorrow.
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With the viewer held a distance
by objects in the foreground
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and the glimpse of the woman
in the mirror above the virginal,
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00:12:37,500 --> 00:12:39,300
the painting is
as much about looking
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as it is about music.
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And joining me to delve into
the enigmatic world
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of Vermeer's Music Lesson
is the writer Tracy Chevalier.
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Tracy, bigger picture first,
what drew you to Vermeer?
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I really loved Vermeer's paintings
because they're so quiet.
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In a world that's really noisy,
in order to look at these paintings,
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you have to slow right down
and get calm and quiet
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and that's pretty unusual.
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He has a special something,
something to do with the light
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and the colour
and the stillness of the paintings
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that really drew me in.
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The Music Lesson in particular,
is this quiet?
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Or is this one of the noisier
paintings he produces?
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I think this is
a really quiet painting,
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really quiet, even though she is
supposedly playing, I suppose.
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I don't think they're saying
anything to each other.
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00:13:29,500 --> 00:13:32,300
It's a very surprising painting
to me,
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because when you look at it,
it's quite large for a Vermeer
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and yet the action
is taking place here,
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it's off centre, and a lot of
the painting is just room.
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So they're kind of squished together
over there in the back,
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really far away from us.
So there's deliberate distance.
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And then this focal point that
of course are the two figures.
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But for me, as the art historian,
I can't but be drawn to the mirror
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that shows her but also,
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above her head,
the legs of the easel.
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00:14:03,820 --> 00:14:06,980
So Vermeer's unravelling the whole
fiction of painting and process.
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00:14:06,980 --> 00:14:10,580
Presumably that appeals to you
as a writer of fiction?
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Yes, it's subtly done,
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because at first
you're looking at the people
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and it's only after a while
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that you realise
that's not a painting.
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00:14:16,980 --> 00:14:18,500
There is a painting on the right,
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00:14:18,500 --> 00:14:21,580
but this is the woman
being reflected.
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00:14:21,580 --> 00:14:23,780
And even when her face
is reflected in the painting,
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00:14:23,780 --> 00:14:26,180
you can't really see her face
very well.
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00:14:26,180 --> 00:14:29,020
But in the top are
the legs of the easel.
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He somehow wanted to insert himself
and yet he's so far away
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00:14:32,380 --> 00:14:34,260
and really, the easel is out here,
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00:14:34,260 --> 00:14:37,300
and there's no way that he could
actually be reflected.
240
00:14:37,300 --> 00:14:39,180
So he's playing around
with perspective.
241
00:14:39,180 --> 00:14:42,780
It seems to me that there's
so many narrative possibilities
242
00:14:42,780 --> 00:14:44,140
in a Vermeer painting.
Yeah.
243
00:14:44,140 --> 00:14:46,860
I mean. the most obvious one is
the relationship between these two,
244
00:14:46,860 --> 00:14:49,060
but then in the detailing
and in the mirroring
245
00:14:49,060 --> 00:14:50,140
and what else is there.
246
00:14:50,140 --> 00:14:52,620
In some ways, that must make him
very inspiring for you,
247
00:14:52,620 --> 00:14:54,900
but on the other hand
it's quite daunting, isn't it?
248
00:14:54,900 --> 00:14:56,860
There's almost too many ways
that this could go,
249
00:14:56,860 --> 00:14:58,460
if you were writing
stories around it.
250
00:14:58,460 --> 00:15:01,100
It's inspiring, but I think
the genius of it
251
00:15:01,100 --> 00:15:03,020
is that you never really know.
252
00:15:03,020 --> 00:15:06,180
So when I wrote about the painting,
Girl With A Pearl Earring,
253
00:15:06,180 --> 00:15:08,820
I wrote a whole novel about
the look on her face
254
00:15:08,820 --> 00:15:11,420
and I still don't really know
what she was thinking.
255
00:15:11,420 --> 00:15:14,940
And in this painting...
It's called The Music Lesson,
256
00:15:14,940 --> 00:15:17,500
but Vermeer didn't title
his paintings,
257
00:15:17,500 --> 00:15:20,660
so maybe this is a man
teaching a woman to play,
258
00:15:20,660 --> 00:15:25,140
but maybe it's a suitor listening
to potentially his fiance.
259
00:15:25,140 --> 00:15:28,100
Or it could be a father listening
to his daughter.
260
00:15:28,100 --> 00:15:30,540
It's very difficult to interpret.
261
00:15:30,540 --> 00:15:32,780
And because they're so far from us,
262
00:15:32,780 --> 00:15:35,500
it's like Vermeer
doesn't really want us to know,
263
00:15:35,500 --> 00:15:38,300
he's saying,
"I'm giving them a private moment
264
00:15:38,300 --> 00:15:39,540
"and you're standing here
265
00:15:39,540 --> 00:15:42,140
"and you're not going to get any
further into that story."
266
00:15:42,140 --> 00:15:43,340
That's interesting.
267
00:15:43,340 --> 00:15:45,300
So you don't think
that he is giving us
268
00:15:45,300 --> 00:15:47,100
a series of clues which we can use
269
00:15:47,100 --> 00:15:49,340
and we can construct
our own narratives?
270
00:15:49,340 --> 00:15:51,660
You're saying fundamentally
that you think he's trying,
271
00:15:51,660 --> 00:15:53,980
metaphorically, to throw
a spanner in the works?
272
00:15:53,980 --> 00:15:56,380
He's always trying to resist
a narrative interpretation?
273
00:15:56,380 --> 00:16:01,340
Yes, I think that when he does allow
more open interpretation,
274
00:16:01,340 --> 00:16:03,420
the paintings aren't as successful.
275
00:16:03,420 --> 00:16:06,220
The most successful paintings
are the most mysterious.
276
00:16:16,500 --> 00:16:18,900
This is the first room of
the exhibition
277
00:16:18,900 --> 00:16:21,580
and it's dedicated to the idea
of music
278
00:16:21,580 --> 00:16:23,940
as either allegory or attribute.
279
00:16:30,100 --> 00:16:33,460
Music had long been
an allegorical motif in art,
280
00:16:33,460 --> 00:16:36,700
a tradition that continued
in the Dutch Golden Age.
281
00:16:38,060 --> 00:16:40,540
In a time before recorded sound,
282
00:16:40,540 --> 00:16:44,220
the sense that music existed only
in the moment of performance
283
00:16:44,220 --> 00:16:47,020
and then disappeared forever
was even more acute.
284
00:16:48,620 --> 00:16:51,860
And so in this still life
the musical instruments
285
00:16:51,860 --> 00:16:54,140
that sit alongside a skull,
286
00:16:54,140 --> 00:16:57,100
an hourglass and other objects
are intended to link
287
00:16:57,100 --> 00:16:59,060
the ephemeral quality of music
288
00:16:59,060 --> 00:17:01,460
to the transitory nature
of human life.
289
00:17:03,700 --> 00:17:07,940
But musical instruments could also
signify personal attributes,
290
00:17:07,940 --> 00:17:12,140
as in this portrait of
Constantijn Huygens and his clerk.
291
00:17:12,140 --> 00:17:14,420
Huygens was powerful and busy man,
292
00:17:14,420 --> 00:17:17,260
secretary to
the Dutch head of state.
293
00:17:17,260 --> 00:17:20,700
He was also a passionate musician
and found the time to write
294
00:17:20,700 --> 00:17:24,980
over 800 musical pieces,
only a handful of which survive.
295
00:17:24,980 --> 00:17:27,660
His musical abilities
and knowledge of theory
296
00:17:27,660 --> 00:17:31,140
were important indicators
of his sophistication
297
00:17:31,140 --> 00:17:34,500
and in this painting, an archlute,
a long necked instrument
298
00:17:34,500 --> 00:17:37,860
with additional bass strings,
lies on a table,
299
00:17:37,860 --> 00:17:40,780
gathered together
with an array of objects
300
00:17:40,780 --> 00:17:42,220
representing his other interests.
301
00:17:47,940 --> 00:17:51,900
Carel Fabritius's gentle handling
of the cool Delft light
302
00:17:51,900 --> 00:17:53,420
and interest in optics,
303
00:17:53,420 --> 00:17:56,180
must have had an influence
on Johannes Vermeer,
304
00:17:56,180 --> 00:17:58,140
who was just beginning
as an artist
305
00:17:58,140 --> 00:18:01,140
when Fabritius was resident
in the city.
306
00:18:01,140 --> 00:18:05,420
This small painting shows a man,
believed to be Fabritius himself,
307
00:18:05,420 --> 00:18:07,700
sitting next to
a number of instruments,
308
00:18:07,700 --> 00:18:10,220
which he is presumed to be selling.
309
00:18:10,220 --> 00:18:14,180
He looks out pensively on
a strangely quiet street scene,
310
00:18:14,180 --> 00:18:16,660
perhaps contemplating
the two paths in life
311
00:18:16,660 --> 00:18:19,060
that seem to be on offer.
312
00:18:19,060 --> 00:18:21,380
More worldly pleasures
and preoccupations
313
00:18:21,380 --> 00:18:23,940
are embodied both by
the tavern sign behind
314
00:18:23,940 --> 00:18:26,500
and musical instruments themselves,
315
00:18:26,500 --> 00:18:28,940
once again a shorthand
for everything
316
00:18:28,940 --> 00:18:30,220
that is transitory in life.
317
00:18:30,220 --> 00:18:34,940
And then across the way,
stands Delft's imposing Nieuwe Kerk,
318
00:18:34,940 --> 00:18:37,660
the New Church,
with its offer of eternal life.
319
00:18:45,220 --> 00:18:49,980
Of the 36 paintings in existence
commonly attributed to Vermeer,
320
00:18:49,980 --> 00:18:51,900
a third are in the USA.
321
00:18:51,900 --> 00:18:53,380
Some of these are now highlights
322
00:18:53,380 --> 00:18:55,380
at the Metropolitan Museum Of Art
in New York
323
00:18:55,380 --> 00:18:56,860
and also here at
324
00:18:56,860 --> 00:18:59,540
the National Gallery of Art,
Washington DC.
325
00:19:00,700 --> 00:19:03,140
Vermeer,
the painter of calm interiors,
326
00:19:03,140 --> 00:19:05,380
is considered,
perhaps more than ever
327
00:19:05,380 --> 00:19:09,020
in an increasingly frenetic world,
one of the all-time greats
328
00:19:09,020 --> 00:19:13,260
and his paintings are now priceless
treasures of these collections.
329
00:19:13,260 --> 00:19:16,220
They represent a pinnacle
of a glorious period in art
330
00:19:16,220 --> 00:19:18,220
known as the Dutch Golden Age.
331
00:19:23,740 --> 00:19:27,420
In the mid-1500s,
the pre-eminent power in Europe,
332
00:19:27,420 --> 00:19:28,780
flush with gold from
333
00:19:28,780 --> 00:19:32,180
the newly-discovered American
territories, was Spain.
334
00:19:32,180 --> 00:19:35,060
And among its domains,
on the flat coastal plains
335
00:19:35,060 --> 00:19:36,460
adjoining the North Sea,
336
00:19:36,460 --> 00:19:38,940
were the provinces of
the Netherlands.
337
00:19:38,940 --> 00:19:42,820
But in 1568, the Dutch revolted.
338
00:19:42,820 --> 00:19:46,900
What happened was very much like
the American revolution,
339
00:19:46,900 --> 00:19:50,460
that the northerners
got tired of, you know, taxes
340
00:19:50,460 --> 00:19:56,460
and all sorts of intrusions
from Spain
341
00:19:56,460 --> 00:20:01,220
and wanted to free themselves
from that kind of oversight.
342
00:20:02,540 --> 00:20:04,980
Under the leadership
of William of Orange,
343
00:20:04,980 --> 00:20:07,580
or William the Silent
as he was also known,
344
00:20:07,580 --> 00:20:10,500
the Dutch successfully created
an independent state
345
00:20:10,500 --> 00:20:13,100
in the Northern Provinces of
the Netherlands.
346
00:20:13,100 --> 00:20:17,020
It was a moment of great celebration
for the Netherlands
347
00:20:17,020 --> 00:20:19,500
and a great pride
of who they were as a country,
348
00:20:19,500 --> 00:20:21,940
I mean, it was huge.
It was like they'd beaten back,
349
00:20:21,940 --> 00:20:24,140
the small little swampy area
had beaten back
350
00:20:24,140 --> 00:20:26,340
this greatest power in the world
and who we are,
351
00:20:26,340 --> 00:20:30,980
our might and our world power
becomes very conscious.
352
00:20:32,220 --> 00:20:34,100
It went further than that.
353
00:20:34,100 --> 00:20:37,100
What followed Spanish rule
was a Republic,
354
00:20:37,100 --> 00:20:39,060
no king, no royal court,
355
00:20:39,060 --> 00:20:42,180
a Dutch Republic that began
to rival Spain,
356
00:20:42,180 --> 00:20:44,060
and England, France and Portugal,
357
00:20:44,060 --> 00:20:47,260
for the title of
the greatest colonial power,
358
00:20:47,260 --> 00:20:51,500
the world leader in trade,
science and art.
359
00:20:51,500 --> 00:20:54,780
This is a new and democratic
360
00:20:54,780 --> 00:20:59,340
and more open economy,
based in urban manufacturing.
361
00:20:59,340 --> 00:21:03,540
The two most important industries
being the manufacture of cloth,
362
00:21:03,540 --> 00:21:07,420
linen, canvas, cotton and so on.
363
00:21:07,420 --> 00:21:11,300
And supporting that is...
The number two reason,
364
00:21:11,300 --> 00:21:15,540
is the great merchant marine of
the Netherlands.
365
00:21:15,540 --> 00:21:19,940
The ships were always full
going in both directions.
366
00:21:19,940 --> 00:21:24,700
And they were great middlemen
in terms of their produce,
367
00:21:24,700 --> 00:21:28,620
for example, they would get wool
from the Baltic countries
368
00:21:28,620 --> 00:21:33,220
and they would finish it into
bolts of cloth on a large scale.
369
00:21:33,220 --> 00:21:39,260
And this merchant marine empire
stretched all the way to China
370
00:21:39,260 --> 00:21:42,220
and ultimately Japan,
throughout South America
371
00:21:42,220 --> 00:21:45,060
and, of course,
they were right here in New York,
372
00:21:45,060 --> 00:21:48,340
which was New Amsterdam
back in those days.
373
00:21:51,380 --> 00:21:53,820
The northern provinces of
the Netherlands,
374
00:21:53,820 --> 00:21:55,740
including the province of Holland,
375
00:21:55,740 --> 00:21:59,260
were full of bustling canals,
ports and dockyards.
376
00:21:59,260 --> 00:22:04,780
In 1659, Vermeer painted this
wonderful view of his native city,
377
00:22:04,780 --> 00:22:08,540
a city full of beautiful,
expensive, well-furnished houses.
378
00:22:10,420 --> 00:22:12,700
Where you would have
in other countries
379
00:22:12,700 --> 00:22:15,500
the kings and queens,
or the emperors
380
00:22:15,500 --> 00:22:18,540
that will buy paintings,
not to forget the Church,
381
00:22:18,540 --> 00:22:21,660
in the Dutch Republic,
382
00:22:21,660 --> 00:22:25,940
there was, like,
a large group of people
383
00:22:25,940 --> 00:22:30,980
that made a lot of money,
so rich burghers, citizens.
384
00:22:30,980 --> 00:22:33,180
And they would have paintings.
385
00:22:33,180 --> 00:22:36,100
They would really fill up
their house with paintings.
386
00:22:36,100 --> 00:22:37,660
This is remarkable.
387
00:22:37,660 --> 00:22:39,980
The average house in Amsterdam
388
00:22:39,980 --> 00:22:42,660
in the 1650s
had ten paintings in it.
389
00:22:42,660 --> 00:22:45,340
This is not true
for Manhattan today.
390
00:22:45,340 --> 00:22:51,220
And the reason in the global,
the big picture,
391
00:22:51,220 --> 00:22:55,260
would be that the main way
you would hold wealth
392
00:22:55,260 --> 00:23:01,100
in another country, land,
is basically unavailable in Holland.
393
00:23:01,100 --> 00:23:05,380
It is remarkable
how urban this culture is.
394
00:23:05,380 --> 00:23:11,300
About 75% of the entire population
lived in cities or towns.
395
00:23:11,300 --> 00:23:16,580
If you went to France in the 1800s,
it would be 90% agrarian.
396
00:23:16,580 --> 00:23:18,500
So this is really very different.
397
00:23:23,620 --> 00:23:27,580
Extraordinary commercial success
had created a middle class
398
00:23:27,580 --> 00:23:30,300
who desired to have paintings
in their homes.
399
00:23:30,300 --> 00:23:33,860
It is estimated
that between 1600 and 1700,
400
00:23:33,860 --> 00:23:37,260
some five-million paintings
were produced.
401
00:23:37,260 --> 00:23:39,300
And this was the Dutch Golden Age,
402
00:23:39,300 --> 00:23:43,740
for that incredible demand led to
an abundance of superb painters.
403
00:24:02,540 --> 00:24:05,500
Accounts from contemporary
travellers to the Dutch Republic
404
00:24:05,500 --> 00:24:06,900
remarked in surprise at
405
00:24:06,900 --> 00:24:09,420
the sheer volume of painting
to be had there
406
00:24:09,420 --> 00:24:13,660
and in astonishment at the people
who seemed to be buying them.
407
00:24:13,660 --> 00:24:16,740
It was commonplace
for blacksmiths or cobblers,
408
00:24:16,740 --> 00:24:18,340
merchants or bankers,
409
00:24:18,340 --> 00:24:21,380
to adorn their homes and shops
with artworks.
410
00:24:21,380 --> 00:24:23,580
This was something unique in Europe.
411
00:24:23,580 --> 00:24:26,940
Art commissioned not by a court
of kings and courtiers,
412
00:24:26,940 --> 00:24:28,100
but by wealthy,
413
00:24:28,100 --> 00:24:31,140
and indeed not-so-wealthy,
businessmen.
414
00:24:31,140 --> 00:24:34,420
And what they wanted was
a reflection of their own lives.
415
00:25:37,100 --> 00:25:41,460
This work shows a finely-dressed
young woman standing at a virginal,
416
00:25:41,460 --> 00:25:44,780
her outward gaze an invitation to
the viewer to come
417
00:25:44,780 --> 00:25:46,980
and join her in making music.
418
00:25:48,180 --> 00:25:50,740
The scene is set in
a Delft interior,
419
00:25:50,740 --> 00:25:54,380
typical of Vermeer,
as light spills from a window on
420
00:25:54,380 --> 00:25:57,820
the left and onto a floor
of black and white tiles.
421
00:26:04,420 --> 00:26:06,940
The woman plays a muselar virginal,
422
00:26:06,940 --> 00:26:09,260
an instrument usually played
standing up.
423
00:26:11,340 --> 00:26:13,660
Unlike the virginal
seen in The Music Lesson,
424
00:26:13,660 --> 00:26:17,900
or the Rucker's one in the gallery,
both featuring a printed motto,
425
00:26:17,900 --> 00:26:21,900
this more deluxe version has
a painted landscape on the lid,
426
00:26:21,900 --> 00:26:25,140
done in the style of
a Delft contemporary.
427
00:26:25,140 --> 00:26:28,260
The instrument maker
would leave certain areas blank,
428
00:26:28,260 --> 00:26:31,100
allowing their clients
to commission artists
429
00:26:31,100 --> 00:26:35,140
to decorate the virginal,
often doubling its price.
430
00:26:35,140 --> 00:26:37,900
Behind the young woman,
on the back wall,
431
00:26:37,900 --> 00:26:40,580
are two paintings, a small landscape
432
00:26:40,580 --> 00:26:43,740
and an image of Cupid
holding a playing card,
433
00:26:43,740 --> 00:26:45,700
signifying faithfulness in love.
434
00:26:48,820 --> 00:26:51,580
Now, I've been joined again by
exhibition curator Betsy Wieseman.
435
00:26:51,580 --> 00:26:54,220
Betsy, this room is filled
with women
436
00:26:54,220 --> 00:26:56,980
playing musical instruments,
437
00:26:56,980 --> 00:26:59,820
of which perhaps the most supreme
example is this one.
438
00:26:59,820 --> 00:27:02,580
What do we know about
the women in general
439
00:27:02,580 --> 00:27:04,860
and this woman in particular?
440
00:27:04,860 --> 00:27:07,300
Is this a portrait?
Is this a fantasy?
441
00:27:07,300 --> 00:27:09,300
Do we know anything about them?
Are they generic?
442
00:27:09,300 --> 00:27:11,660
I think it may be
a little bit of everything.
443
00:27:11,660 --> 00:27:14,780
I think Vermeer based the figures
in his paintings
444
00:27:14,780 --> 00:27:17,740
perhaps on family members,
or professional models,
445
00:27:17,740 --> 00:27:20,580
or friends who would have
stood for the paintings.
446
00:27:20,580 --> 00:27:23,660
But I think that they're
intentionally generalised
447
00:27:23,660 --> 00:27:28,620
and idealised, so that we can't
relate them to a specific person.
448
00:27:28,620 --> 00:27:33,780
There is no way looking at this that
we can mistake it for a portrait.
449
00:27:33,780 --> 00:27:36,340
It might bear a generic resemblance
to someone,
450
00:27:36,340 --> 00:27:40,860
but I think the intent
is to make it intentionally vague
451
00:27:40,860 --> 00:27:43,340
and anonymous, if you will,
452
00:27:43,340 --> 00:27:46,220
so that perhaps
we can project ourselves
453
00:27:46,220 --> 00:27:48,860
into the painting a little better.
454
00:27:48,860 --> 00:27:51,300
The other thing
that immediately strikes you
455
00:27:51,300 --> 00:27:54,180
is the paintings within
the painting,
456
00:27:54,180 --> 00:27:56,780
but in particular the painting
on the lid of the virginal.
457
00:27:56,780 --> 00:28:00,980
Why would the virginal
have had that particular landscape,
458
00:28:00,980 --> 00:28:02,380
for example, painted on it?
459
00:28:02,380 --> 00:28:05,420
Well, I think a lot
of musical instruments
460
00:28:05,420 --> 00:28:08,420
had landscapes like this
decorating them,
461
00:28:08,420 --> 00:28:10,780
because it was
something pleasant to look at.
462
00:28:10,780 --> 00:28:14,180
Sometimes,
they have mythological figures,
463
00:28:14,180 --> 00:28:17,220
or people having a picnic,
things like that,
464
00:28:17,220 --> 00:28:20,380
pleasant pastoral associations.
The paintings here,
465
00:28:20,380 --> 00:28:22,740
both the painting on
the background wall
466
00:28:22,740 --> 00:28:26,060
and the one decorating the lid
of the virginal
467
00:28:26,060 --> 00:28:32,300
are done by Vermeer in the style
of one of his Delft contemporaries,
468
00:28:32,300 --> 00:28:33,940
a landscape painter.
469
00:28:33,940 --> 00:28:36,940
Sometimes, they have printed mottos
on the lid,
470
00:28:36,940 --> 00:28:41,740
but a more expensive option would be
to hire a painter
471
00:28:41,740 --> 00:28:43,460
to paint a landscape,
472
00:28:43,460 --> 00:28:47,060
or another scene
that you recommended to them.
473
00:28:47,060 --> 00:28:48,620
Just looking at this,
in his lifetime
474
00:28:48,620 --> 00:28:52,180
would this painting have been more
valuable than the virginal
475
00:28:52,180 --> 00:28:54,500
that he paints with the landscape
on it,
476
00:28:54,500 --> 00:28:56,700
or in the culture of Delft
at the time
477
00:28:56,700 --> 00:28:59,220
would the instrument itself
have been more valued?
478
00:28:59,220 --> 00:29:02,380
I think the instrument
would have cost more.
479
00:29:02,380 --> 00:29:05,580
Virginals like this would
have been incredibly expensive
480
00:29:05,580 --> 00:29:09,540
and owned only by, you know,
the very well-to-do.
481
00:29:09,540 --> 00:29:14,260
And we know from the inventory
of Vermeer's possessions
482
00:29:14,260 --> 00:29:17,380
that he in fact did not own
a virginal like this.
483
00:29:20,700 --> 00:29:23,740
On April 20th 1653,
484
00:29:23,740 --> 00:29:27,580
the 20-year-old Johannes Vermeer
married Catharina Bolnes,
485
00:29:27,580 --> 00:29:31,220
the daughter of a respectable
and wealthy catholic family.
486
00:29:31,220 --> 00:29:33,420
Given Vermeer's
financial circumstances
487
00:29:33,420 --> 00:29:35,940
and prospects following
his father's death
488
00:29:35,940 --> 00:29:39,180
a few months before,
this was a fortuitous match.
489
00:29:40,740 --> 00:29:43,820
Catharina's mother, Maria Thins,
was reluctant to give
490
00:29:43,820 --> 00:29:46,500
consent for the marriage,
but in the end relented,
491
00:29:46,500 --> 00:29:49,460
perhaps only when
the Protestant Vermeer
492
00:29:49,460 --> 00:29:51,900
agreed to convert to Catholicism.
493
00:29:51,900 --> 00:29:55,420
This question of religion's
important for Vermeer,
494
00:29:55,420 --> 00:29:59,660
because he grew up Protestant,
but converted to Catholicism,
495
00:29:59,660 --> 00:30:02,140
in order to marry
the woman he loved.
496
00:30:02,140 --> 00:30:05,100
And then he lives in
his mother-in-law's house,
497
00:30:05,100 --> 00:30:08,540
which is interesting
for Vermeer's economy,
498
00:30:08,540 --> 00:30:12,740
because the mother-in-law
was moderately wealthy
499
00:30:12,740 --> 00:30:15,140
and had a four-storey house.
500
00:30:15,140 --> 00:30:19,660
So the question of housing
and even food was, in part,
501
00:30:19,660 --> 00:30:22,540
taken care of for Vermeer.
502
00:30:22,540 --> 00:30:26,780
He was the person who would
guide visitors
503
00:30:26,780 --> 00:30:29,980
to the Catholic chapel in
the neighbourhood.
504
00:30:29,980 --> 00:30:34,220
The Dutch Catholics,
perhaps 30% in Delft,
505
00:30:34,220 --> 00:30:38,460
worshipped mostly in chapels
within private houses.
506
00:30:38,460 --> 00:30:42,860
And Vermeer's own painting,
the Allegory Of The Catholic Faith,
507
00:30:42,860 --> 00:30:46,420
the one rather realistic thing
about the picture,
508
00:30:46,420 --> 00:30:48,940
the female figure
who is an allegory
509
00:30:48,940 --> 00:30:51,980
of the faith itself
and a globe under her feet,
510
00:30:51,980 --> 00:30:53,740
she dominates the world.
511
00:30:53,740 --> 00:30:57,980
She's looking up at a glass sphere
which symbolises heaven.
512
00:30:57,980 --> 00:31:01,100
But the surprising thing is
the setting itself,
513
00:31:01,100 --> 00:31:03,660
it's not a church,
or something allegorical.
514
00:31:03,660 --> 00:31:06,780
It looks like the room
in an ordinary house
515
00:31:06,780 --> 00:31:12,340
that was on a rather impromptu basis
set up as a Catholic church.
516
00:31:12,340 --> 00:31:15,460
Tapestry on the floor used as a rug
517
00:31:15,460 --> 00:31:19,260
and a table which is modified
into an altar
518
00:31:19,260 --> 00:31:21,460
by a blue cloth thrown over it.
519
00:31:21,460 --> 00:31:24,780
And this really reflected
the conditions
520
00:31:24,780 --> 00:31:28,020
of Catholic worship
in the Netherlands.
521
00:31:28,020 --> 00:31:30,180
It had to be in private.
522
00:31:30,180 --> 00:31:31,620
We were a Calvinist country
523
00:31:31,620 --> 00:31:33,820
and all the churches
were whitewashed,
524
00:31:33,820 --> 00:31:37,500
so there were no paintings
ordered for churches.
525
00:31:37,500 --> 00:31:41,060
And with the new clientele,
so to say,
526
00:31:41,060 --> 00:31:45,460
so new people ordering paintings,
they would order portraits.
527
00:31:45,460 --> 00:31:47,660
Of course,
this is not something new,
528
00:31:47,660 --> 00:31:52,340
but because there were so many
different people ordering portraits,
529
00:31:52,340 --> 00:31:57,300
then the artist also had to make up
a new genre of portraits,
530
00:31:57,300 --> 00:32:01,020
because everybody wanted to have
different portraits.
531
00:32:01,020 --> 00:32:05,260
I think what is important,
because there were so many artists,
532
00:32:05,260 --> 00:32:10,380
they had to have, like,
niche markets,
533
00:32:10,380 --> 00:32:13,620
because if everybody would make
the same paintings,
534
00:32:13,620 --> 00:32:15,060
then, you know, it wouldn't work.
535
00:32:16,580 --> 00:32:19,020
Living in his mother-in-law's home,
536
00:32:19,020 --> 00:32:22,100
Vermeer set to work
in his first-floor studio.
537
00:32:22,100 --> 00:32:24,460
Here, the stage was set
for the production
538
00:32:24,460 --> 00:32:26,940
of the delicately lit
domestic interiors
539
00:32:26,940 --> 00:32:28,980
for which he is so renowned.
540
00:32:28,980 --> 00:32:31,260
The marriage too was productive,
541
00:32:31,260 --> 00:32:34,740
over the years,
Vermeer would father 15 children,
542
00:32:34,740 --> 00:32:39,620
between 7 and 11 of whom
seemed to have survived infancy.
543
00:32:39,620 --> 00:32:42,980
You know, the house he lived in
was not that big.
544
00:32:42,980 --> 00:32:46,180
So there must have been a room
where he could close the door
545
00:32:46,180 --> 00:32:47,500
and make his paintings.
546
00:32:47,500 --> 00:32:50,380
Because I cannot imagine
making what he did
547
00:32:50,380 --> 00:32:53,300
with the noise of, you know,
young children.
548
00:32:53,300 --> 00:32:55,780
Because I come from
a very large family myself,
549
00:32:55,780 --> 00:32:58,140
so I have a lot of brothers
and sisters,
550
00:32:58,140 --> 00:33:01,380
and it was very difficult
to find a quiet room
551
00:33:01,380 --> 00:33:04,820
in the house where we lived.
And we had a very large house.
552
00:33:04,820 --> 00:33:08,580
So I can relate
in that aspect to Vermeer.
553
00:33:08,580 --> 00:33:12,300
But then when
you would look at his paintings,
554
00:33:12,300 --> 00:33:14,420
it's so quiet.
555
00:33:19,260 --> 00:33:22,100
Interestingly,
this is the only painting
556
00:33:22,100 --> 00:33:23,700
that has children in it.
557
00:33:23,700 --> 00:33:26,620
Are they Vermeer's own?
We'll never know.
558
00:33:26,620 --> 00:33:29,980
No names, no explanations survive
for any of his subjects.
559
00:33:31,980 --> 00:33:34,180
What is apparent is a stillness,
560
00:33:34,180 --> 00:33:37,060
maybe a peace that never existed
in his own household.
561
00:33:38,940 --> 00:33:41,900
And it was these somewhat
peaceful domestic scenes
562
00:33:41,900 --> 00:33:45,100
that Vermeer concentrated on for
the rest of his life.
563
00:34:11,050 --> 00:34:12,970
Out of a probable 50 paintings
564
00:34:12,970 --> 00:34:15,370
that Vermeer made
during his lifetime,
565
00:34:15,370 --> 00:34:17,330
just 36 survive to the present day.
566
00:34:18,450 --> 00:34:20,330
So it's a rare moment that Vermeers
567
00:34:20,330 --> 00:34:23,690
from different collections
are brought together.
568
00:34:23,690 --> 00:34:25,890
Rarer still because
The Guitar Player
569
00:34:25,890 --> 00:34:30,410
from Kenwood House in London
is so fragile that it never travels
570
00:34:30,410 --> 00:34:34,650
and so has never been part of
a Vermeer exhibition before.
571
00:34:34,650 --> 00:34:38,490
The Kenwood House picture has been
physically here in the gallery
572
00:34:38,490 --> 00:34:39,610
for the past year or so,
573
00:34:39,610 --> 00:34:42,170
while Kenwood House has been
closed for repair,
574
00:34:42,170 --> 00:34:44,850
so we've had this honoured guest
in the galleries.
575
00:34:44,850 --> 00:34:46,770
But this is the first time
576
00:34:46,770 --> 00:34:50,250
that we've seen
the three paintings together.
577
00:34:53,730 --> 00:34:56,610
It's really
a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,
578
00:34:56,610 --> 00:34:59,450
you know, just to have
those three pictures and nothing,
579
00:34:59,450 --> 00:35:02,410
and no other paintings
together on the wall.
580
00:35:02,410 --> 00:35:06,010
I think that makes it
even more powerful,
581
00:35:06,010 --> 00:35:08,730
just because that's
what you're focusing on.
582
00:35:08,730 --> 00:35:12,570
And it's almost as if you're in
the artist's studio
583
00:35:12,570 --> 00:35:16,730
and you see the paintings lined up,
you know, as he's finishing them.
584
00:35:18,530 --> 00:35:21,810
What's been so fascinating
about doing this exhibition
585
00:35:21,810 --> 00:35:25,290
is just getting that better sense of
the artist at work
586
00:35:25,290 --> 00:35:27,930
and his thought process
587
00:35:27,930 --> 00:35:30,130
as he's doing different
interpretations of
588
00:35:30,130 --> 00:35:33,010
the theme of music in these
wonderful little genre pictures.
589
00:35:39,970 --> 00:35:43,570
It's amazing to see
the three paintings together,
590
00:35:43,570 --> 00:35:44,570
I mean it... It just...
591
00:35:46,090 --> 00:35:49,330
..sort of comes over you
like a wave, you know, it's...
592
00:35:49,330 --> 00:35:54,210
VOICE BREAKING:
..it's a very, erm, moving moment.
593
00:36:54,690 --> 00:36:58,170
One of the most important
metaphorical roles of music in art
594
00:36:58,170 --> 00:37:01,570
was to communicate
the concept of harmony.
595
00:37:01,570 --> 00:37:03,210
Harmonious relationships,
596
00:37:03,210 --> 00:37:05,810
both between men and women
and within families,
597
00:37:05,810 --> 00:37:08,050
could be expressed through
the depiction
598
00:37:08,050 --> 00:37:11,250
of a unified ensemble or duet.
599
00:37:11,250 --> 00:37:13,890
The implication in this painting
is that the young woman
600
00:37:13,890 --> 00:37:17,770
will soon be joined
in just such a duet.
601
00:37:17,770 --> 00:37:19,650
Her virtuous nature is contrasted
602
00:37:19,650 --> 00:37:22,250
with the painting on the wall
behind her,
603
00:37:22,250 --> 00:37:25,650
showing a prostitute playing a lute,
with a procuress,
604
00:37:25,650 --> 00:37:30,570
or brothel madam, demanding payment
from the prospective customer.
605
00:37:30,570 --> 00:37:33,250
It has been suggested
that this work is a companion piece
606
00:37:33,250 --> 00:37:36,050
to A Young Woman Standing
At A Virginal,
607
00:37:36,050 --> 00:37:38,650
both show solo female
keyboard players
608
00:37:38,650 --> 00:37:40,410
gazing out at the viewer.
609
00:37:40,410 --> 00:37:43,610
But in this work,
the viola da gamba in the foreground
610
00:37:43,610 --> 00:37:45,290
lies ready to be played,
611
00:37:45,290 --> 00:37:49,210
a direct appeal to duet with
the young woman.
612
00:37:49,210 --> 00:37:51,930
And while the other is set
during the day,
613
00:37:51,930 --> 00:37:54,770
here, the scene takes place
after dark.
614
00:37:54,770 --> 00:37:56,130
A visit made in the evening
615
00:37:56,130 --> 00:37:58,170
would be
a much more private interaction
616
00:37:58,170 --> 00:38:00,010
than one made in the middle of
the day.
617
00:38:04,570 --> 00:38:07,570
Now I'm joined again by
the novelist Tracy Chevalier.
618
00:38:07,570 --> 00:38:10,890
Tracy, it's been suggested
I think many times
619
00:38:10,890 --> 00:38:14,330
that this painting,
A Young Woman Seated At A Virginal
620
00:38:14,330 --> 00:38:19,850
is a pendant piece, a companion,
to A Girl Standing By A Virginal.
621
00:38:19,850 --> 00:38:22,130
Do you see them in
interrelated terms,
622
00:38:22,130 --> 00:38:24,650
or do you think they're
self-contained pictures?
623
00:38:24,650 --> 00:38:26,930
I go back and forth about it.
624
00:38:26,930 --> 00:38:29,730
You know, of course, they're hung
in the same room in
625
00:38:29,730 --> 00:38:33,010
the National Gallery, so it's
quite tempting to see them together.
626
00:38:33,010 --> 00:38:35,850
They are probably painted around
the same time
627
00:38:35,850 --> 00:38:38,690
and yet this one has
a very different feel to it.
628
00:38:38,690 --> 00:38:40,730
It's much darker.
A lot of it is quite murky.
629
00:38:40,730 --> 00:38:42,730
If you see the painting
in the background,
630
00:38:42,730 --> 00:38:45,330
it's very murky
and the floor is a bit dingy
631
00:38:45,330 --> 00:38:48,850
when you think about usually you see
those tiles, kind of, popping out.
632
00:38:48,850 --> 00:38:52,250
And what you see popping out
is her face,
633
00:38:52,250 --> 00:38:54,850
her sleeve
and the bass viol there.
634
00:38:54,850 --> 00:38:59,330
She has a beautiful face,
but you look at the rest of her
635
00:38:59,330 --> 00:39:02,050
and somehow the painting
is not actually that great either.
636
00:39:02,050 --> 00:39:04,570
Look at those arms... and the hands!
637
00:39:04,570 --> 00:39:06,810
Somebody likened them
to pig trotters
638
00:39:06,810 --> 00:39:09,010
and I sort of laughed
and I thought,
639
00:39:09,010 --> 00:39:12,450
"We don't normally allow ourselves
to criticise master painters."
640
00:39:12,450 --> 00:39:15,570
We just think every painting
they've done is perfect
641
00:39:15,570 --> 00:39:18,290
and that's not the case,
even with Vermeer.
642
00:39:18,290 --> 00:39:21,850
I think there's a feeling
of strain about this
643
00:39:21,850 --> 00:39:24,850
that I don't see in
The Lady Standing At The Virginal
644
00:39:24,850 --> 00:39:27,970
in quite the same way.
This is a darker piece.
645
00:39:27,970 --> 00:39:30,810
In the depths
of your rich imagination,
646
00:39:30,810 --> 00:39:33,330
what kind of a man do you imagine
Vermeer now,
647
00:39:33,330 --> 00:39:37,130
as a consequence of having
looked at his painting so intently?
648
00:39:37,130 --> 00:39:39,850
I had to make a decision
about what he was like,
649
00:39:39,850 --> 00:39:42,050
in order to write
a novel about him
650
00:39:42,050 --> 00:39:45,370
and what I decided was,
based on the few facts we know,
651
00:39:45,370 --> 00:39:49,850
he had 11 children so it would've
been a huge chaotic household.
652
00:39:49,850 --> 00:39:51,650
We knew he lived
with his mother-in-law
653
00:39:51,650 --> 00:39:53,610
and we know that
most of his paintings
654
00:39:53,610 --> 00:39:55,810
were painted in this room
and this corner
655
00:39:55,810 --> 00:39:58,170
and they think that it was on
the first floor
656
00:39:58,170 --> 00:40:00,730
of his mother-in-law's house,
in this one room.
657
00:40:00,730 --> 00:40:06,410
And I think how could he paint these
very quiet, contemplative paintings
658
00:40:06,410 --> 00:40:08,010
with 11 children around
659
00:40:08,010 --> 00:40:10,450
and all of the servants
and the wife and everybody.
660
00:40:10,450 --> 00:40:12,650
So is the answer
that they're refuge?
661
00:40:12,650 --> 00:40:14,170
Painting is a form of refuge?
Yes.
662
00:40:14,170 --> 00:40:16,850
The answer is that
he compartmentalised his life.
663
00:40:16,850 --> 00:40:21,090
He kept his daily life
away from his studio life
664
00:40:21,090 --> 00:40:24,570
and so, in my book,
I decide he says, you know,
665
00:40:24,570 --> 00:40:28,610
"Nobody can come into this studio."
666
00:40:28,610 --> 00:40:31,050
Not the wife, not the kids.
667
00:40:31,050 --> 00:40:34,210
oh, well, the servant can come in
to clean. And that's it.
668
00:40:34,210 --> 00:40:37,770
So there's this quite, in a way,
a slight ruthlessness
669
00:40:37,770 --> 00:40:42,650
about getting his time away from
the family and this is a refuge.
670
00:40:42,650 --> 00:40:45,370
And I think this is a painting
that reveals
671
00:40:45,370 --> 00:40:47,570
maybe some anxiety in that refuge,
672
00:40:47,570 --> 00:40:49,890
that it's not such
a refuge after all.
673
00:40:49,890 --> 00:40:53,490
There's a glistening beauty to
the pearls, to the sleeve,
674
00:40:53,490 --> 00:40:56,690
but he didn't do that with
the gold around this painting,
675
00:40:56,690 --> 00:40:59,530
there, where he does in some of
the other paintings
676
00:40:59,530 --> 00:41:01,210
that we see in this gallery.
677
00:41:01,210 --> 00:41:05,490
He doesn't bring out the best
in this scene, he leaves it dark.
678
00:41:53,690 --> 00:41:56,290
The Guitar Player
marks a compositional change
679
00:41:56,290 --> 00:41:59,370
from the other Vermeer pictures
in the exhibition
680
00:41:59,370 --> 00:42:01,210
and in his oeuvre in general.
681
00:42:01,210 --> 00:42:03,930
Vermeer places
the figure to the left of frame,
682
00:42:03,930 --> 00:42:05,770
leaving a bare wall
and some books
683
00:42:05,770 --> 00:42:08,970
to take up the remainder of
the picture.
684
00:42:08,970 --> 00:42:11,530
The imbalance suggests
a sense of movement
685
00:42:11,530 --> 00:42:15,730
and impending change
to this deceptively-simple image.
686
00:42:15,730 --> 00:42:17,930
With tipped head and a gentle smile,
687
00:42:17,930 --> 00:42:21,010
the woman fixes her gaze
on something just outside,
688
00:42:21,010 --> 00:42:24,050
some magnetic presence
seems to threaten
689
00:42:24,050 --> 00:42:26,010
to pull her from our view,
690
00:42:26,010 --> 00:42:28,730
suggesting that she now plays
not for us,
691
00:42:28,730 --> 00:42:30,490
but for an unseen visitor.
692
00:42:33,610 --> 00:42:35,410
Whilst on loan from Kenwood House,
693
00:42:35,410 --> 00:42:38,890
The Guitar Player has been subject
to an extensive technical analysis
694
00:42:38,890 --> 00:42:41,090
here at the National Gallery.
695
00:42:41,090 --> 00:42:43,690
One of the most
fascinating discoveries
696
00:42:43,690 --> 00:42:46,250
is the high number of
paint brush bristles
697
00:42:46,250 --> 00:42:47,770
embedded in the paint,
698
00:42:47,770 --> 00:42:50,370
both in this
and the other Vermeers on show.
699
00:42:52,570 --> 00:42:56,970
This could have been due to Vermeer
using poor quality or older brushes,
700
00:42:56,970 --> 00:42:59,770
an intriguing insight into
the state of his studio,
701
00:42:59,770 --> 00:43:02,530
or even his financial situation
towards the end of his life.
702
00:43:03,770 --> 00:43:06,570
Equally fascinating
is a pair of fingerprints
703
00:43:06,570 --> 00:43:09,970
detected on the top edge
of The Guitar Player left,
704
00:43:09,970 --> 00:43:12,650
we presume,
by the great master himself
705
00:43:12,650 --> 00:43:14,650
when the paint was still wet.
706
00:43:15,810 --> 00:43:17,730
Betsy Wieseman, as curator
of this exhibition
707
00:43:17,730 --> 00:43:20,970
were you surprised to discover
that Vermeer didn't have
708
00:43:20,970 --> 00:43:24,770
a pristine studio,
given that he presents
709
00:43:24,770 --> 00:43:28,570
such a clean vision of the world
in his art?
710
00:43:28,570 --> 00:43:30,770
Well, on the one hand
I wasn't so surprised,
711
00:43:30,770 --> 00:43:33,770
because he did have 11 children.
But, on the other hand,
712
00:43:33,770 --> 00:43:38,090
I was surprised that it left
a physical trace on the paintings.
713
00:43:38,090 --> 00:43:41,330
So this kind of conflict
that we perceive
714
00:43:41,330 --> 00:43:44,210
between process and
the immaculate way
715
00:43:44,210 --> 00:43:46,970
that he produces the image
is one thing,
716
00:43:46,970 --> 00:43:50,650
but the other thing
that's so remarkable about this work
717
00:43:50,650 --> 00:43:53,090
is the radical cropping
of this figure
718
00:43:53,090 --> 00:43:56,170
and the fact that we are brought
much more intimately
719
00:43:56,170 --> 00:43:58,090
and directly into the picture.
720
00:43:58,090 --> 00:44:00,890
Is this a radical departure
in Vermeer's art,
721
00:44:00,890 --> 00:44:03,250
or am I over-reading?
I think it is unusual
722
00:44:03,250 --> 00:44:07,010
and one thing I should point out
for this painting
723
00:44:07,010 --> 00:44:09,970
is that it is on
its original strainer
724
00:44:09,970 --> 00:44:11,850
and the original canvas,
725
00:44:11,850 --> 00:44:14,050
it's never been cut,
or modified in anyway.
726
00:44:14,050 --> 00:44:16,610
So this is his intention?
Absolutely.
727
00:44:16,610 --> 00:44:21,290
I think that he did it
in order to animate the composition
728
00:44:21,290 --> 00:44:25,530
and to give us a sort of sense
of the unexpected,
729
00:44:25,530 --> 00:44:30,090
because it seems as if she's being
pulled outside of the picture.
730
00:44:30,090 --> 00:44:33,010
And obviously she's looking off
in that direction,
731
00:44:33,010 --> 00:44:36,490
her attention is no longer on us,
the viewer standing in front of her,
732
00:44:36,490 --> 00:44:40,730
but by something that we can't see,
that we're not privy to.
733
00:44:40,730 --> 00:44:44,570
And I think that's Vermeer's way
of enticing us even further,
734
00:44:44,570 --> 00:44:47,690
because there is something
that we want to be a part of
735
00:44:47,690 --> 00:44:50,810
and I think there's this
subconscious feeling of jealousy.
736
00:44:50,810 --> 00:44:53,010
We want to be the one
that she is looking at
737
00:44:53,010 --> 00:44:55,330
and that her attention
is directed towards.
738
00:44:58,930 --> 00:45:01,210
By the beginning of the 1670s,
739
00:45:01,210 --> 00:45:03,930
Vermeer,
with a large family to feed,
740
00:45:03,930 --> 00:45:06,290
was desperately short of funds.
741
00:45:07,610 --> 00:45:11,330
In 1672,
things deteriorated further.
742
00:45:11,330 --> 00:45:14,330
The so-called rampjaar,
"Year Of Disaster",
743
00:45:14,330 --> 00:45:18,210
saw invading armies
from France, England and Germany.
744
00:45:22,610 --> 00:45:27,210
The economy, under these assaults,
practically collapsed.
745
00:45:27,210 --> 00:45:29,610
After the French invasion
and the rampjaar
746
00:45:29,610 --> 00:45:32,370
and all that,
the art market dries up.
747
00:45:32,370 --> 00:45:35,050
That makes an impact on him
as a painter,
748
00:45:35,050 --> 00:45:36,530
but also for his art dealing.
749
00:45:36,530 --> 00:45:38,570
So we know that
he can't sell his paintings.
750
00:45:38,570 --> 00:45:40,410
So there are quite
a few paintings left over,
751
00:45:40,410 --> 00:45:42,690
so that's when they have
their financial problems.
752
00:45:43,850 --> 00:45:46,650
The effects of the rampjaar
were certainly complicating
753
00:45:46,650 --> 00:45:48,570
his poor financial situation.
754
00:45:48,570 --> 00:45:51,730
Yet Vermeer's paintings
bear no signs of the crisis.
755
00:45:52,930 --> 00:45:55,650
There is one great painting
by Vermeer
756
00:45:55,650 --> 00:45:59,570
that suggests he is thinking
beyond his own lifetime
757
00:45:59,570 --> 00:46:02,650
and that is
the Art Of Painting In Vienna,
758
00:46:02,650 --> 00:46:06,330
where he shows an artist
very much like Vermeer,
759
00:46:06,330 --> 00:46:11,050
who is painting a model
who is a very attractive young lady
760
00:46:11,050 --> 00:46:12,690
holding a trombone.
761
00:46:12,690 --> 00:46:16,130
But she is Clio,
the muse of history.
762
00:46:16,130 --> 00:46:19,490
And this is a very rich allegory
763
00:46:19,490 --> 00:46:22,770
about the status of
the art of painting
764
00:46:22,770 --> 00:46:24,170
in Vermeer's time.
765
00:46:24,170 --> 00:46:28,770
And probably a suggestion
that Dutch painting in particular
766
00:46:28,770 --> 00:46:31,490
had rose to the highest level in
767
00:46:31,490 --> 00:46:35,130
the judgement of people
like themselves,
768
00:46:35,130 --> 00:46:39,090
who consider the highest level
to be the greatest verisimilitude,
769
00:46:39,090 --> 00:46:43,970
rather than the most pretentious
mythological subject, or whatever.
770
00:46:43,970 --> 00:46:48,170
So that large painting
was kept in his studio
771
00:46:48,170 --> 00:46:50,130
and was probably...
772
00:46:50,130 --> 00:46:53,490
I mean, calling card
wouldn't be the perfect term for it,
773
00:46:53,490 --> 00:46:56,010
but a kind of sign for his ability.
774
00:46:56,010 --> 00:46:58,890
Just imagine going up
the narrow staircase
775
00:46:58,890 --> 00:47:00,250
in Vermeer's house
776
00:47:00,250 --> 00:47:03,610
and you are there under
the rafters of the roof.
777
00:47:03,610 --> 00:47:08,370
And there's probably one window
looking out on to the town square,
778
00:47:08,370 --> 00:47:11,770
and a fairly humble interior
with a wooden floor
779
00:47:11,770 --> 00:47:14,690
and maybe two easels
and a dirty worktable.
780
00:47:14,690 --> 00:47:18,330
And you see Vermeer's image of
the artist's studio,
781
00:47:18,330 --> 00:47:21,170
with a marble floor and a tapestry
782
00:47:21,170 --> 00:47:24,690
and grand decoration
and much larger scale.
783
00:47:24,690 --> 00:47:29,850
And he's dressed like some
Bohemian dandy from the past.
784
00:47:29,850 --> 00:47:33,530
So it is a kind of dream world,
in that respect.
785
00:47:41,570 --> 00:47:45,050
Vermeer died,
possibly from a stroke,
786
00:47:45,050 --> 00:47:47,730
on December 15th 1675.
787
00:47:47,730 --> 00:47:52,370
His death at the age of 43
was described by his wife Catharina
788
00:47:52,370 --> 00:47:55,290
as, "owing to the great burden
of his children,
789
00:47:55,290 --> 00:47:58,610
"and having no means of his own,
he had lapsed into decay".
790
00:48:00,690 --> 00:48:03,730
You know that we have an inventory
of Vermeer's house
791
00:48:03,730 --> 00:48:05,730
shortly after his death
792
00:48:05,730 --> 00:48:09,330
and we see so many things
in his paintings
793
00:48:09,330 --> 00:48:12,170
that don't turn up in the inventory.
794
00:48:12,170 --> 00:48:14,970
And this seems to be
pretty complete,
795
00:48:14,970 --> 00:48:17,050
it has got his studio, etc,
796
00:48:17,050 --> 00:48:21,810
and there is not a single
musical instrument or tapestry.
797
00:48:21,810 --> 00:48:24,650
There are, I think,
about 16 pictures
798
00:48:24,650 --> 00:48:28,570
throughout the house
and a few other fancy things,
799
00:48:28,570 --> 00:48:32,610
including the yellow ermine,
or imitation ermine,
800
00:48:32,610 --> 00:48:37,370
and velvet jacket in yellow
that we see in a number of pictures.
801
00:48:37,370 --> 00:48:41,050
But it's remarkable to see
no tapestries,
802
00:48:41,050 --> 00:48:46,330
no brass chandeliers apparently,
and no musical instruments at all.
803
00:48:49,450 --> 00:48:52,770
He was one of the greatest painters
of the Dutch Golden Age,
804
00:48:52,770 --> 00:48:54,850
yet his brilliance only began to
805
00:48:54,850 --> 00:48:57,850
gain wide recognition
two centuries later,
806
00:48:57,850 --> 00:49:00,970
when a French critic praised him
in the 1860s.
807
00:49:02,690 --> 00:49:05,090
At the time of
Johannes Vermeer's death,
808
00:49:05,090 --> 00:49:07,850
despite the wealth
displayed in his paintings,
809
00:49:07,850 --> 00:49:11,210
he, the artist,
was virtually penniless.
810
00:49:23,650 --> 00:49:28,170
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