One of the many advantages of living in this beautiful city is that you can take some time to really dive deep into discovering Delft’s fascinating history. I love exploring culture with my children.
World-famous Dutch painter, Johannes Vermeer (1632-1675) lived a large part of his life in Delft. “Almost all of his paintings are apparently set in two smallish rooms in his house in Delft; they show the same furniture and decorations in various arrangements and they often portray the same people, mostly women” quoted in Wikipedia.
Here are five ways to learn more about him and his beautiful works of art, along with some events you may like to visit.
1. Visit the Prinsenhof Museum
After 320 years, Vermeer’s painting of The Little Street is finally back in Delft! Usually displayed at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, Vermeer is coming home | The Little Street returns to Delft showcases this stunning painting and can currently be seen at the Prinsenhof Museum until 17th July. The exhibition describes the long search to identify the place that inspired Vermeer to paint his masterpiece. It deals with a number of theories, but specifically explains the most recent research on this topic.
There is a free app “Where is Vermeer” (also in English) to take a walk through Vermeer’s Delft.
Adults: € 12,00 (or free entrance with the MuseumKaart), Children 0-3 years: free entrance, Children 4-12 years: € 3,00
There are often special children’s activities at the Prinsenhof.
For full details visit http://prinsenhof-delft.nl/en/
2. Visit the Mauritshuis
Several of Vermeer’s most famous paintings reside at the Mauritshuis in The Hague, just a short trip from Delft. “Girl with a Pearl Earring” is well known worldwide.
Johannes Vermeer
Meisje met de parel, c. 1665, Mauritshuis, Den Haag
One of my own personal all time favourite paintings is “View of Delft”.
Johannes Vermeer
Gezicht op Delft, c. 1660-1661, Mauritshuis, Den Haag
Adults: € 14,00 (or free entry with the MuseumKaart), Children under 19 years: free entrance
There are also regular special children’s and family activities at the Mauritshuis.
For full details visit https://www.mauritshuis.nl/en/
3. Visit the Vermeer Centrum Delft
Back to Delft again and this is a great place to really get to know all about Vermeer and his life. The paintings are all reproductions, but this presents the unique opportunity to see them all in one place. On the 5th June 2016, there is a guided tour and musical performance “Variations on Vermeer”
Adults: €9,00, Children under 11 years: free entrance
Every Sunday at 10.30am there is a free English tour.
For full details visit http://www.vermeerdelft.nl/en/
4. Watch “Girl with a Pearl Earring” or read the book
The 2003 movie with Colin Firth and Scarlett Johansen gives a glimpse into what life might have been like in 17th century Delft. Despite being mostly filmed in Amsterdam, Belgium and Luxembourg, you can still spot a few external scenes when the streets of Delft were shut down for a few hour’s filming. You can also read the book by Tracy Chevalier.
5. Have your photo taken as Girl with a Pearl Earring
Something Extra is a fabulously eclectic artist’s studio at Oude Langendijk 36 – Delft, not far from the Nieuwe Kerk. Barbara van Gelder is the person behind a number of great projects based here, including photo shoots starting from only 5 euros. She and her team can also be regularly seen in costumes around Delft bringing Vermeer’s paintings and history to life.
So that’s just a start with a few ideas of how you can get to know Vermeer and learn more about Delft’s history. We’d love your comments below!
Renee
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