Moça com Copo de Vinho (The Girl with the Wine Glass / Dame en Twee Heren) - Johannes Vermeer
Museu Herzog Anton Ulrich Braunschweig Alemanha
OST - 78x67 - 1659-1660
The first
certain mention of the painting in the Braunschweig catalog, ca. 1711, then
again in 1744 and 1776. During the times of Napoleon I, the work was part of
his spoils of war, and remained in Paris. Restituted afterward, it was again
catalogued by L. Pape in 1846 as by Jacob van der Meer. The attribution to
Vermeer van Delft originates with Thoré in 1860.
A young woman
wearing an elegant red dress is seated in the foreground turned toward the left
and looking half-smilingly at the viewer. It is one of the rare instances when
Vermeer animates one of his figures with a semblance of expression. She seems
to be courted by a fine gentleman, bent over and encouraging the young lady to
take a sip from the wine glass that she holds in her hand. Farther back, another.
gentleman sits behind a table featuring an exquisitely painted still life of a
silver plate, fruit, and white pitcher. The second male figure sits in a pose
reminiscent of the Girl Asleep, apparently befuddled by too much wine. A Man's
Portrait in the background may be one of the family portraits mentioned in the
inventory of Vermeer's widow in 1676, which was part of his stock as a dealer.
As to the coat of arms prominently displayed in the window, it belonged to a
former neighbours family that used to live in a house next to the Vermeers.
The painting
has been overcleaned, the last time in 1900, and the sitting man in the
background was overpainted during the eighteenth century, as comes out of the
descriptions of 1744 and 1776. The room where the artist placed the composition
resembles others frequently used by him. Patterns, windows, and walls reappear
with minor changes. In this respect, Vermeer did not show much originality. His
mastery resides in the delicacy of the execution, the use of light, and the
grouping of his figures.
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