Light Structure – The Light in the Age of Rembrandt and Vermeer
18 November 2011 – 26 February 2012
Museum Hessen Kassel

Seventy superb works from the Baroque age of painting will be displayed in the upcoming exhibition Light Structure: The Light in the Age of Rembrandt and Vermeer, in William Castle Museum in Kassel. The exhibition will address one of the most notable aspects of European painting: the translation of light in painting. Attempts on the part of painters to render the myriad effects of light with paint were paralleled by intense scientific research on light.

In cooperation with the Berlin research group Historical Light Structure (http://www.lichtgefuege.de/index.html) the exhibition examines the different aspects of light painting in the 17th century on the basis of paintings, graphics and optical devices, also in view of the contemporary scientific treatises. The starting point is the art of the 15th and 16 Century and the fundamental innovations of Caravaggio. North of the Alps have been taken including those of Utrecht artists like Gerard van Honthorst and developed.

Different areas of the exhibition are dedicated to the particular diversity and range of Dutch paintings of light, including day light, nocturnal landscapes, interior and portrait paintings. Vermeer’s Girl with a Glass of Wine will be one of the principal works of the exhibition.

museum website: http://www.museum-kassel.de/index_navi.php?parent=1707

Human Connections in the Age of Vermeer
by Arthur K. Wheelock Jr.  and Danielle H.A.C. Lokin
Scala Publishers Ltd
2011

This book focuses on the many forms of communication that existed in seventeenth-century Dutch society between family members, lovers, and professional acquaintances, both present and absent. The forty-four carefully selected Dutch genre paintings include major works by many of the finest masters of the period, including Johannes Vermeer, Pieter de Hooch, Gerard ter Borch and Gabriel Metsu. Vermeer’s three masterpieces about love letters form the core of the exhibition as they are profound examples of the power of communication. Dutch artists of the seventeenth century portrayed the wide range of emotions elicited by the various forms of communication, not only in the manner in which they render gestures and facial expressions of personal interactions, but also in the ways in which they show men and women responding to the written word. The painters often introduced objects from daily life that had symbolic implications, among them musical instruments, to enrich the pictorial narratives of their scenes. Published in conjunction with the exhibition Communication: Visualizing the Human Connection in the Age of Vermeer  (2011-2012), which celebrates the 400th anniversary of the diplomatic exchanges between Japan and the Netherlands, this book connects the pictorial and the literary aspects of Dutch cultural traditions during the Golden Age.

The Fitzwilliman Museum offers  a series of free public lectures to accompany the exquisite exhibition that features four Vermeer paintings including the masterful Music Lesson (rarely on public display) and the Louvre Lacemaker.

All talks are on Friday, 13:15 – 14:00

28 October-2011
Love for sale in the 17rh century: Secrets of the oldest profession.
Colin Wiggins, The National Gallery

18 Novermber-2011
The Rediscovery of Vermeer and the reception of genre painting.
Dr Merideth Hale, History of Art Deprartment, University of Cambridge

With the arrest Wednesday of notorious Boston crime boss James “Whitey” Bulger, many in the art world are now asking: Could it provide a break in the greatest art heist in American history which included Vermeer’s Concert? Rumors have long swirled that Bulger, the head of the city’s powerful Irish-American mob at the time, may have played a role – or must have known who did. Some have speculated that he stashed the stolen masterpieces away to use as a “get-out-of-jail-free card”  if he was ever caught. Others think he sent the paintings to allies in the Irish Republican Army to use as a bargaining chip. The Gardner Museum had no comment Thursday on the arrest other than a Tweet saying, “Until a recovery is made, our work continues.” Many who have studied the case are similarly skeptical about Bulger’s direct involvement. Last year, investigators in the Gardner case said there was no evidence in the mountains of wiretaps and other records to link Bulger to the crime.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2011/06/what-does-whitey-bulger-know-about-the-1990-gardner-museum-art-heist.html

Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art, Kyoto:   25 June – 16 Oct 2011
Miyagi Museum of Art, Sendai:     27 Oct-2011 – 12 Dec 2011
The Bunkamura Museum of Art, Tokyo:    23 Dec – 14 March 2012

The Japanese exhibition, Communication: Visualizing Human Connection in the Age of Vermeer (curated by Arthur Wheelock) will feature three excellent Vermeers: Woman in Blue Reading a Letter (Rijksmuseum), A Ladt Writing (National Gallery of Art)   and Lady Writing a Letter with her Maid (National Gallery of Ireland)  plus over forty other paintings. All three Vermeer’s will travel to all three venues, Kyoto, Tokyo and Sendai.  There will also be an English edition catalogue (Human Connections in the Age of Vermeer) published by Scala in addition to the Japanese language catalogue.
first venue:
Kyoto Municipal Museum, Kyoto
June 25 – October 16, 2011

second venue:
Bunkamura Museum of Art, Tokyo
December 23, 2001 – March 14, 2012

to be announced:
The Miyagi Museum of Art
34-1 Kawauchi-Motohasekura, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi

http://www.nationalgalleries.org/collection/in_focus/4:20388/20377/20377

The Young Vermeer in Context
5 March 2011, 2pm – 6:30pm
National Gallery of Scotland
The Mound
Edinburgh EH2 2EL
United Kingdom

information form the museum:

The young Vermeer presents a unique opportunity to compare directly the three earliest paintings by Johannes Vermeer. On occasion of this exhibition the National Gallery of Scotland is staging a study afternoon, bringing together a distinguished group of international experts. Focussing on Vermeer’s early career the talks will revisit his start as a history painter and shift to genre painting, his artistic and social environment, and the rediscovery of  “Young Vermeer” in the 19th century. The podium will offer the opportunity to get involved and discuss these important paintings with the experts and to discover more about the development of one of the world’s most celebrated artists.

speakers:

- Dr. Albert Blankert, Independent Scholar, The Hague
- Edwin Buijsen, Head of Collections, Royal Picture Gallery Mauritshuis, The Hague
- Dr. Adriaan E. Waiboer, Curator of Northern European Art, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin

podium:
- Professor Christopher Brown, Director, The Ashmolean Museum, Oxford
- Professor Gregor J. M. Weber, Head of the Department of Fine Arts, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam

moderation:

- Dr Tico Seifert Senior Curator of Northern
European Art, National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh

1.30 – 2pm, registration (HLT)
2 – 5pm,  study afternoon (HLT)
5 – 6.30pm, Wine reception and private view (NG)

Tickets: £12 (£10 concessions) are available from
the Information Desk at the National Gallery Complex,
or by calling 0131 624 6560, Monday

see museum flyer:
http://www.codart.nl/images/02526_NGS_
TheYoungVermeerInContext%20A5%20Flyer%28Final%29v4.pdf