Vermeer's A Girl Reading a Letter....

By an Open Window.

Ipad rendering of Vermeer's Girl Reading a Letter

Inspiration can come from the strangest places. For the last few days I've been thinking about what painting I wanted to work with next. Would it be a Motherwell, a Rothko, what to do?

Finally, I was reading a New Yorker article on Eileen Fisher (the clothing designer/company) and the writer was describing the office of the Color Designer. She had a picture of the Girl with a Pearl Earring on her inspiration board. Finally, it clicked, Vermeer! It's a Vermeer kind of week!

One of the many things I love about his work are his utterly strange and even confusing compositions. To illustrate this, I chose the painting A Girl Reading a Letter By An Open Window. Why is that green curtain there? Was it absolutely necessary for him to place his subject in the middle of the frame? Why is she standing behind a still life? It's so bizarre and so doesn't follow the "rules" of composition, but it totally works. It's mysterious, intriguing, beautiful. This should be a fun week!