PUBLISHED TO ACCOMPANY THE ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME EXHIBITION AT THE RIJKSMUSEUM AMSTERDAM THIS IS
THE FIRST MAJOR STUDY ON VERMEER'S LIFE AND WORK FOR MANY YEARS. ---------- 'Proust was
once so excited to see a Vermeer show that he collapsed ¿ I got chest pains merely leafing
through the catalogue' Jonathan Jones Guardian 'Invest in the fat catalogue stuffed with
scholarly discoveries and photographic closeups and you will learn about everything from
Vermeer¿s optical mastery to his moral symbolism' Rachel Campbell-Johnston The Times
'Excellent' Artists & Illustrators 'Getting a ticket for the once-in-a-lifetime Vermeer
exhibition above at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam this year might frankly be a bit of a
challenge but you can at least console yourself with the exhibition catalogue published by
Thames & Hudson which is a gorgeous thing. Nothing matches seeing a painting in the flesh but
this comes mightily close.' The Herald ---------- Vermeer's intensely quiet and enigmatic
paintings invite the viewer into a private world often prompting more questions than answers.
Who is being portrayed? Are his subjects real or imagined? And how did he create such an
unrivalled sense of intimacy? Bringing together diverse strands of the Dutch master's
professional and private worlds this is the first major authoritative study of Vermeer's life
and work for many years throwing light on all thirty-seven of his paintings. The book was
designed by Irma Boom the `Queen of Books¿ and printed on an uncoated `Munken Print White¿
paper specially commissioned to ensure the veracity of colours. Irma Boom says: `the matte
paper brings you closer to Vermeer there is no gloss or glare in between just like with the
real works.¿ With a wide selection of contextual illustrations commentaries and up-to-date
research by distinguished international Vermeer scholars this is the definitive volume on the
most admired of all seventeenth-century Dutch masters. With contributions by Bart Cornelis
National Gallery London Bente Frissen Rijksmuseum Amsterdam Sabine Pénot
Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna Pieter Roelofs Rijksmuseum Amsterdam Friederike Schuett
Staedel Museum Frankfurt am Main Christian Tico Seifert National Galleries of Scotland
Edinburgh Ariane van Suchtelen Mauritshuis The Hague Gregor J.M. Weber Rijksmuseum
Amsterdam Marjorie E. Wieseman National Gallery of Art Washington
