Vermeer: Faith in Painting
Category: Books,Arts & Photography,History & Criticism
Vermeer: Faith in Painting Details
Review "The most important work to date on Vermeer's theory of painting and his oeuvre. Burnished by the excellent translation by Terry Grabar, this study presents a thoughtful assessment of Vermeer's personal interpretation of the nature of art."---Linda K. Varkonda, Sixteenth Century Journal"This intense, impassioned book reflects the ways in which we continue to be enthralled by the magic of Vermeer's light and deft touch." (Virginia Quarterly Review)"Vermeer has always proved an elusive artist, yet he has also held a special fascination.... [This book] makes considerable headway in outlining the reasons.... Arasse ... brings both a nicely calibrated visual sensitivity and a thoughtful analytical bent to the pictures themselves [and] lay[s] out what he considers to have been a painting program by Vermeer."---Larry Silver, American Historical Review Read more Language Notes Text: English (translation) Original Language: French Read more See all Editorial Reviews
Reviews
There is little to add to the publisher's presentation of this book, and the previous critics, except...That Daniel Arasse in this book, as in all of his work, reflects upon the place where the scientific, analytic mind intersects the artistic one. One of his major preoccupations was going back and forth between looking at detail, and subject, just as the eye, while looking, constantly must adjust focus between different planes in order for us to see, and interpret our world.Arasse's presentation of Vermeer's art reads like a highly complex murder mystery, as he sifts through clues, and puts them together to go beyond a reductionist iconographic approach which assigns one meaning to one element, outside of context.Arasse looks at painting as discourse, not illustration.He is keenly aware that the scientific method got a tremendous boost in the workshops of the Renaissance painters, who definitely had eyes to see, and observe.His critical approach is invaluable, beyond even the subject of Vermeer's painting, and can be generalized intelligently to other domains.A word of warning : the book is not casual reading, and should be read slowly and carefully in order to make the most of it.For people who like challenging reading.