THE GIRL WITH A PEARL EARRING
42” x 31” x 3”
Mix Media assemblage
The collectibles along the border of my version of The Girl with a Pearl Earring by the Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer tells a story about the artists life. For example, the figurine of the artist at the bottom of piece represents Vermeer. The snails at the top represent the fact Vermeer worked very slowly and produced relatively few paintings in his lifetime.
I used paint tubes to showcase that he used very expensive pigments in his works. Vermeer worked and lived in Delft all his life which is represented bythe two Delft ceramic houses. There are many women in the border because his paintings mainly portray women.
Vermeer and his wife moved in with her wealthy mother, represented by a figurine of an old woman in the top right, where he lived and worked for the rest of his life, His wife gave birth to 15 children. 11 survived into adulthood. The skier represents an expensive ice boat Vermeer bought for his children which was recorded as part of his debt.
Original painting by Johannes Vermeer completed in 1665
