Text: Jun Xin ? Photo: Internet
Speaking of the painter Vermeer, Delft cannot be ignored. I knew this small Dutch town long before I went abroad. In the textbook for primary school students, there is a text about Leeuwenhoek. He was a janitor at Delft City Hall and had a very leisurely job. To pass the time, he sharpened his lenses. Unexpectedly, after a while, the world's first microscope was born.
Leeuwenhoek experimented with light and lenses and invented the microscope. It is very likely that he shared his insights on visual art with Vermeer. After all, the two lived not far from Delft, which had a population of only 20,000 at the time, and were both born in 1632. What's more, they share the same passion for observation.
The difference is that Leeuwenhoek focused on the invisible world and then clearly displayed it to people; while Vermeer captured the world's moments like a camera with amazing insight. The meticulous craftsmanship of the two reminds me of the Delft people in the 17th century, who imitated Chinese blue and white porcelain and fired "Delft" blue. Sure enough, the nourishment of talent requires water and soil.
Vermeer’s almost purely female theme selection made me think of Cao Xueqin and Pu Songling across national boundaries. All three of them worked tirelessly to spread the word to their boudoir and praise the truth, goodness and beauty of women despite the life experiences of poverty and lack of ambition. However, due to the cultural barrier between the East and the West, the people in Vermeer's paintings appear more subtle and difficult to understand.
In fact, many of Vermeer's paintings are about love. Judging from the picture, there is no scene of them having sex with each other, but a certain object or detail depicted by Vermeer clearly tells us that it is all because of love. Let us travel back more than three hundred years to read Vermeer's love messages.
Who pushed in the door and interrupted the musician's work? The beautiful woman in red was obviously distracted. Or are they a couple, or even a couple? There was wine on the table, and Cupid looked on.
Several symbols related to love in the 17th century can be found in this painting: wine, the catalyst of love; Cupid, the son of Venus, the goddess of love, the symbol of love; the door opening in the upper left corner The birdcage represents the heart that hates getting married, which is the same as when a woman left the palace in ancient my country; the sit qin means the harmony of marriage.
Perhaps, this scene is the memory in the painter's mind, like the song: Who is knocking on my window? Who is playing the strings? That forgotten time gradually came back to my heart...
In the luxurious and spacious room, the woman played the piano and the men listened. They all seemed to be immersed in the music. This painting is called "Music Lesson", so who is teaching whom? The painter appears in the mirror: we can see the legs of the easel. What was also exposed was the woman's expression. Her eyes were looking to the side - the cold man.
In middle-class families in the seventeenth century, most women played the Virgina, and the cover of the piano said: Music, companionship in happiness, comfort in sadness. The cello, played by a man, fell to the ground without anyone paying attention. An empty chair means the absence of your partner. The strangest thing is that there is only a wine bottle on the table, but no wine glasses. After the music class is over, how should they start a romantic feast?
All of the above are just like Zhang Xian's words: When the feast is held, the autumn water is slow, and the jade pillars are tilted and the geese are flying. When the ball hits the broken heart, Chunshan's eyebrows are low.
Vermeer was good at telling stories through paintings within paintings. In fact, in the Netherlands at that time, every household had seven or eight paintings hanging on the wall. In "Concert" three paintings appear. On the left wall and on the piano cover are pastoral landscape paintings, a celebration of nature that is equivalent to the pursuit of romance.
The only ambiguous thing is the painting on the right, called "Old Madam", by Derrick van Babrun, a painter from Utrecht, the Netherlands, completed in 1622. In this painting, the prostitute is in the center, flanked by turbaned old men asking for favors from young women. This seductive scene appears in Vermeer's paintings more than once. What exactly was he trying to say? Is it for love?
I can't help but think of the furnishings in Qin Keqing's bedroom in "A Dream of Red Mansions": Wu Zetian's precious mirror, Feiyan's gold plate, Yang Taizhen's papaya, Princess Shouchang's bed, and Princess Tongchang's pearl account. It seems to be irrelevant and irrelevant, but it actually hints at Qin Keqing's origin as a noble person in Tianhuang, and coincides with his judgment: Love in heaven, love in the sea, fantasy of love and body, and love will lead to lust when we meet.
Therefore, we have reason to believe that "Old Madam" is by no means a casual pen of Vermeer.
Most of Vermeer's works have a glittering aura, which is due to the tiny, thick, dense spots that are applied at the end. Perhaps this is also the source of inspiration for post-Impressionist painters Seurat and Van Gogh's pointillism. Moreover, Vermeer liked to borrow light from windows, making the theater he created real and natural.
The most special feature of this painting "Woman Standing in Front of Virgina" is the appearance of multiple Cupids. First of all, in the big picture on the wall, Cupid is holding a card with the number "1" written on it, which means that love must be exclusive. On the tiles at the foot of the wall, there are a series of small Cupid images. The first one to the left of the woman can be vaguely seen as Cupid grabbing a fishing rod. Does this mean that the person who wants to take the bait is taking the bait? There is also a saying in our country about fishing for a golden turtle's son-in-law.
After marrying Caterina, Vermeer converted to Catholicism and lived with his mother-in-law. In those days, marriage was not allowed between two people of different religious beliefs. There is a proverb in the West: Two beliefs are like pillows, and the devil sleeps in the middle. Therefore, for the sake of marriage, Vermeer made sacrifices and concessions. Moreover, it is said that Vermeer's mother-in-law was very wealthy, and the "Old Madam" painting hung in her house.
In "Woman Sitting at the Virgina", the painting of the mother-in-law's house appears again. A girl in a blue dress with beautiful features, her hands gently caressing the keys. The cello, which is a male instrument, leans against the virgina, as if it is waiting for someone to come and play a song with the woman.
However, it is not easy to find a close friend! Just as the 19th ancient poem said: The Qing Dynasty businessmen are blowing with the wind, and the middle tune is lingering. Sighing again and again, generosity is more than sad. I don't care about the pain of the singer, but I regret that the sound of my close friend is rare. May I be a pair of swans and fly high.
"Guitar Player" is a painting that can read the mood. The girl is concentrating on playing, the joy on her face is obvious. This is perhaps Vermeer's most joyful work. But when he created it, he was facing increasing financial embarrassment. A few years later, Vermeer died young and deeply in debt. His widow used "Guitar Player" to pay off the bakery's debt.
In 1696, more than twenty years after Vermeer's death, twenty-one paintings were sold at an auction.
It was not until the mid-19th century that Vermeer finally recovered and became famous far and wide, becoming as famous as Rembrandt and the most important painter of the Dutch Golden Age.
But he is still mysterious, and people know very little about his life, let alone his love life. Vermeer's love messages are all related to music, so is there a woman who plays the piano and sings hidden deep in his heart?
Some people say that the characters Wang Yuyan and Xiao Longnu created by Jin Yong are actually his dream lover Xia Meng; and the many flower ghosts and fox monsters who love to recite poetry in Pu Songling's works are all his The shadow of confidante Gu Qingxia.
Then, Vermeer’s “harp” knot may also be possible!
Same series of articles
My 2016 - Embracing Van Gogh
Listen, it is the painting that speaks
From the hands of Haydn Take over the essence of Mozart - visit Beethoven’s former residence
There is a paint called love