Johannes Vermeer’s “Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window” is one of the most famous works of Dutch Golden Age painting. The Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister presents it along with nine other paintings by Vermeer and a selection of around 50 works of Dutch genre painting in the largest Vermeer exhibition ever organised in Germany.
The exhibition is accompanied by an extensive online program. In the guided tours via video conference through the virtual exhibition and online talks in German or English, we invite you to discover Vermeer and his artistic environment.
Supported by intensive scientific investigation and an international commission of experts, the painting was restored in the restoration studio for paintings at the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden between 2017 and 2021.
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In the course of the work process, it was discovered that a long-known extensive area of overpainting on the rear wall of the interior in the “Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window” does not derive from Vermeer himself, but must have been executed by another hand some time after his death. The light-coloured overpainting was therefore gradually removed to reveal the underlying motif of a standing Cupid with a bow, arrows and two masks, as a “painting within the painting” on the rear wall of the room.
By removing old areas of retouching and layers of varnish, the original dazzling vibrancy of the colours was reestablished. “Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window” has fundamentally changed its appearance and must now be viewed and read in a new light. Since only about 35 of Vermeer’s paintings survive, the restoration of this early major work to its original condition also has implications for the interpretation of his entire oeuvre.
For this reason, the Gemäldegalerie is holding an exhibition in which the “Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window” is shown in conjunction with nine other paintings by Vermeer that are closely related to it. The works by the Delft painter, including “Woman in Blue Reading a Letter”, “Lady Standing at a Virginal” and “Woman Holding a Balance”, are accompanied by an exquisite selection of works of Dutch genre painting that illustrate relationships and interactions between the works of Vermeer and his contemporary artist colleagues.
When you play our YouTube or Vimeo videos, information about your use of YouTube or Vimeo is transmitted to the US operator and may be stored. In addition, external media such as videos or fonts are loaded and stored in your browser.
When you play our YouTube or Vimeo videos, information about your use of YouTube or Vimeo is transmitted to the US operator and may be stored. In addition, external media such as videos or fonts are loaded and stored in your browser.
When you play our YouTube or Vimeo videos, information about your use of YouTube or Vimeo is transmitted to the US operator and may be stored. In addition, external media such as videos or fonts are loaded and stored in your browser.
When you play our YouTube or Vimeo videos, information about your use of YouTube or Vimeo is transmitted to the US operator and may be stored. In addition, external media such as videos or fonts are loaded and stored in your browser.
Discover the background and interesting facts about Johannes Vermeer and 17th century Dutch genre painting in this free weborello.
