Vermeer, Delft School Examined in Exhibit.(Brief Article)

Best known for quiet, carefully described images of domestic life as seen in works by Johannes Vermeer, Pieter de Hooch and others, the 17th century Delft artists also produced history pictures and decorative arts, as revealed in a new exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art entitled "Vermeer and the Delft School," on view from March 8 through May 27. Featuring 85 paintings, 35 drawings and a selection of tapestries, gilded silver and Delftware faience, the exhibit aims to cast the Delft School in a new light--one that emphasizes the roles of the neighboring court at the Hague and of sophisticated patrons in Delft. Following its tenure at the Met, the exhibit will travel to the National Gallery in London from June 20 through Sept. 16.

Although the paintings of Vermeer are often regarded as the culmination of realism in Dutch art, the exhibit will reveal how earlier artistic developments in Delft paved the way for the achievements of Vermeer and his celebrated colleagues--de Hooch, Carel Fabritius, Emanuel de Witte and others. Vermeer is represented by 15 paintings. Among the highlights are such rarely lent masterpieces as "The Art of Painting" (1667) and "The Procuress" (1656). Also included is De Hooch's "Portrait of a Family in a Courtyard in Delft" (1658) and Fabritius' "Goldfinch" (1654).

The drawings and watercolors on exhibit vary from preparatory sketches to finished drawings depicting views in Delft that are still recognizable today. A selection of delicate flower, shell and other nature studies are among the highlights of works on paper.