Press release 16/6/2017

Vermeer and the Masters of Genre Painting: Inspiration and Rivalry

Proudly supported by Zurich Insurance plc, Exhibition Partner

#VermeerDublin

The National Gallery’s highly anticipated exhibition, Vermeer and the Masters of Genre Painting: Inspiration and Rivalry, which has seen record numbers at the Paris venue, opens in the National Gallery of Ireland on Saturday 17th June and runs through to 17th September 2017. It is the major Old Master exhibition in Europe this summer coinciding with the reopening of the Gallery’s refurbished historic wings and new display of the permanent collection. 

Conceived by the National Gallery of Ireland, this revelatory exhibition celebrates the work of Johannes Vermeer (1632-1675) and gives new insights into the relationships the artist maintained with other great painters of the Dutch Golden Age.  It brings together over 60 paintings from major public and private collections around the world. Ten masterpieces by Vermeer will be included representing nearly a third of the artist’s surviving works and the third highest number of works by Vermeer ever assembled.  Advance ticket booking is open www.nationalgallery.ie

Dr Adriaan E. Waiboer, Head of Collections and Research at the National Gallery of Ireland: “Johannes Vermeer is frequently portrayed as an enigmatic figure working largely in isolation, but this exhibition clearly demonstrates how Vermeer’s subjects, compositions and figure types owe much to works by contemporary Dutch artists, including Gerrit Dou, Gerard ter Borch and Frans van Mieris, all of whom were more successful and influential in their time.”

The exhibition brings together groups of paintings of domestic scenes – letter writing, in front of a mirror, musical scenes – and the obvious similarity of the compositions shows the interplay between artists – nonetheless Vermeer’s brilliance and originality brings new heights to the subjects and his work takes genre painting to a yet higher level.

Patrick Manley, CEO of Zurich Insurance plc.: “As part of our continued commitment to arts and culture, Zurich is delighted to be the Exhibition Partner for this unique Exhibition. To have almost one third of the entire life's output of Vermeer on view at the National Gallery of Ireland is truly extraordinary.”

The National Gallery of Ireland’s own Vermeer, Woman Writing a Letter, with her Maid c.1670, which is regarded as one of the artist’s finest works, is shown alongside other exquisite compositions including Woman with a Balance, c.1663–4 (National Gallery of Art, Washington); Woman with a Pearl Necklace, 1663–4 (Staatliche Museen zu Berlin); The Astronomer, 1668 (Musée du Louvre, Paris) and The Geographer, 1669 (Städel Museum, Frankfurt). Paintings of daily life by contemporaries of Vermeer, including Gerrit Dou, Gerard ter Borch, Jan Steen, Gabriel Metsu, Pieter de Hooch and Frans van Mieris, also feature.

An accompanying catalogue to the exhibition is published by Yale University Press. Edited by Adriaan E. Waiboer with contributions by, among others, Arthur K. Wheelock Jr, Blaise Ducos, Eric Jan Sluijter, Marjorie E. Wieseman and Quentin Buvelot. Price €29.95pb at exhibition venues.

‘Setting the Scene’ is the theme of a summer-long public engagement programme designed entirely to support the exhibition, Vermeer and the Masters of Genre Painting. This programme provides for both casual and in-depth engagement with this exhibition, presenting it from different points of view through pop-up talks, lectures and academic events, workshops, courses music and film screenings.  Pick up a full calendar brochure from the Information Desk or download it here. 

NOTES 

Exhibition
Vermeer and the Masters of Genre Painting: Inspiration and Rivalry
The exhibition in the National Gallery of Ireland will be on display from 17 June to 17 September 2017. 
Admission charge.  Book Online www.nationalgallery.ie 

Exhibition Partner – ZURICH INSURANCE PLC
The National Gallery of Ireland is proud to have Zurich Insurance plc join us as Exhibition Partner of Vermeer and the Masters of Genre Painting: Inspiration and Rivalry.

Ticket booking for Vermeer is now open at nationalgallery.ie

Ticket Prices
€15 Full Price
€10 Concessions
€5 Students
Free for Under 16 years    
*Free for Friends of NGI
Advance ticket booking is strongly recommended. 

*Members of the Friends of the NGI go free to exhibitions. 

Become a Friend of the National Gallery of Ireland and enjoy unlimited free entry to all exhibitions, along with lots of other benefits. Email [email protected] 

Exhibition Organisers
The exhibition is organised by the National Gallery of Ireland in collaboration with the Musée du Louvre, Paris, and the National Gallery of Art, Washington.

Curators
Dr Adriaan E. Waiboer, Head of Collections and Research, National Gallery of Ireland
Dr Arthur K. Wheelock Jr., Curator of Northern Baroque Painting, National Gallery of Art, Washington
Dr Blaise Ducos, Curator of 17th-and 18th-century Dutch and Flemish paintings, Musée du Louvre, Paris

Catalogue
A catalogue accompanying the exhibition is published by Yale University Press.
Edited by Adriaan E. Waiboer with contributions by, among others, Arthur K. Wheelock Jr, Blaise Ducos, Eric Jan Sluijter, Marjorie E. Wieseman and Quentin Buvelot, the catalogue benefits from an extensive research programme carried out in collaboration with the Netherlands Institute for Art History (RKD), The Hague. €29.95pb at exhibition venues (www.yalebook.co.uk)

Website 
A dedicated website, ConnectVermeer.org, has been developed in collaboration with the Netherlands Institute for Art History (RKD), The Hague, and serves as an interactive platform on Vermeer and Dutch genre painters.

Film
A feature documentary entitled, ‘Vermeer: Beyond Time’ is released as one of the events associated with the exhibition. The film, directed by Jean-Pierre Cottet, Guillaume Cottet and produced by James Mitchell, is a co-production between Martange Production (Paris), Soho Moon Pictures (Dublin), Arte France and the Louvre. The film will be broadcast on RTÉ One, on 6th July 2017. 

Academic Conference 
Vermeer and the Masters of Genre Painting: Inspiration and Rivalry 
National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin 
9 September 2017 | Conference Tickets
The National Gallery of Ireland (NGI) will host a scholarly conference in connection with the landmark exhibition Vermeer and the Masters of Genre Painting: Inspiration and Rivalry. As the originating institution of the exhibition, the NGI will bring together a panel of international speakers who will discuss different aspects of the fascinating network of relationships among Dutch genre painters of the period 1650–1675. While Vermeer is currently the most renowned painter of such scenes, the Delft master was only one of many artists who excelled in capturing everyday surroundings in exquisite detail. Other major genre painters included Gerrit Dou, Gerard ter Borch, Jan Steen, Pieter de Hooch, Gabriel Metsu and Frans van Mieris. Even though these artists were active in different cities in the Dutch Republic, their work bears strong similarities in style, subject matter, composition and technique. They frequently drew inspiration from each other’s paintings and then tried to surpass each other in verisimilitude, technical prowess and aesthetic appeal. This vibrant artistic rivalry contributed to the exceptionally high quality of their combined oeuvre. 

Speakers: 
Junko Aono Associate Professor, Kyushu University, Fukuoka ; Ronni Baer William and Ann Elfers Senior Curator of European Paintings, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston ; Piet Bakker Art Historian, Technical University of Delft ; Perry Chapman Professor and Associate Chair, Department of Art History, University of Delaware ; Melanie Gifford Research Conservator for Painting Technology, National Gallery of Art, Washington ; Lisha Glinsman Conservation Scientist, National Gallery of Art, Washington ; Angela Ho Assistant Professor, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA ; John Loughman Associate Professor, University College Dublin ;Adriaan Waiboer Head of Collections and Research, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin.

#VermeerDublin
www.nationalgallery.ie