Vermeer and his girlfriend on exhibition in Bologna

For the first time on our site, we are hosting a guest post, written by Caterina Stringhetta of The ART Post Blog. Caterina has been visiting the exhibition The Myth of the Golden Age from Vermeer to Rembrandt. Masterpieces from the Mauritshuis being held in Bologna, at Palazzo Fava, until May 25. A much-criticized exhibition, and even we at Finestre Sull’Arte have not shied away from criticism. However, it is in the spirit of sharing, collaboration and openness that we bring you a post in which we talk positively about the exhibition. Happy reading!

A handful of weeks to admire in Bologna The Girl with a Pearl Lorecchino, star of the only European leg of a world tour worthy of a rock star. It is Vermeer’s best-known and best-loved work, but it is also one of those masterpieces that have become symbolic, as they give off a mysterious fascination, just like Leonardo’s Mona Lisa or Munch’s L’Urlo. Before arriving in Italy, the tour of Vermeer’s Girl touched down in five cities, from Japan to the United States, and at the end of the Italian leg, the masterpiece will return to its historic home, the Mauritshuis Museum in lAja, which will reopen its doors to the public after a forced closure of more than two years for restoration and expansion. Presumably, then, The Girl with a Pearl Lorecchino will never leave its museum again after this exceptional event, which explains why this exhibition in Bologna has been so eagerly awaited and is generating so much interest. Suffice it to say that before it opened to the public, it had already reached a record of more than 100,000 bookings.

The exhibition in Bologna, is a journey that, in a crescendo of emotions, leads one’s gaze to cross paths with this Girl. In fact, accompanying Vermeer’s masterpiece are 37 paintings describing the Golden Age. An itinerary divided into 6 sections and hosting the masterpieces of the Dutch Golden Age, the 17th century, during which Flemish painting was among the most appreciated in the world. They range from works reminiscent of the Mauritshuis Museum’s history to paintings of Landscapes, Portraits to Interiors with figures and scenes of everyday life and Still Lifes. Works by Rembrandt, Frans Hals, Van Honthorst, De Hooch, and many other breathtaking masterpieces. Throughout, light is the dominant factor and culminates with the encounter, in the last room, with the absolute star of this event.

One cannot remain indifferent to the enigmatic gaze of Vermeer’s The Girl, who turns her gaze away from the work and seems to be about to tell us something. A shroud of mystery surrounds The Girl with the Pearl Earring, which we do not know whether she was the artist’s daughter or a maid who became the muse of the author of this masterpiece, as described in Tracy Chevalier’s novel and Peter Webber’s recent film. The only certainty is that her face, has bewitched millions of fans and the curious, attracted by her beauty and the light emanating from the work, from the blue hues and yellow ochre and the reflection, precisely, of her pearl earring.

Coupled with this exhibition is, at the same exhibition venue in Palazzo Fava, the exhibition Around Vermeer. A tribute by 25 contemporary Italian artists allarte to the Dutch painter and who, without distinction between figurative and abstract, are inspired by or explicitly quote Vermeer. The exhibition in Bologna, therefore, celebrates a work from the past, but with an eye to the future and the possible inspirations it still offers.

Warning: the translation into English of the original Italian article was created using automatic tools. We undertake to review all articles, but we do not guarantee the total absence of inaccuracies in the translation due to the program. You can find the original by clicking on the ITA button. If you find any mistake,please contact us.