The Exhibit of a Lifetime: Vermeer at the Rijksmuseum
In February 2022, the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, Netherlands opened the largest exhibit of the works of Johannes Vermeer in history.[1] Considered one of the greatest painters in history, the 17th century Dutch painter is only believed to have around 35-37 works attributed to him today.[2] Known for depictions of every day, middle-class life in the Netherlands in the 17th century, the painter is most celebrated for his use of light.[3] The Rijksmuseum exhibit, simply titled, “Vermeer,” is on view now at the museum, containing 28 works by the artist.[4] The last time a Vermeer exhibit even approached this many works, it was in 1995-1996 at the National Gallery of Art in D.C., with 21 works on view at the time. [5] The “once-in-a-lifetime” Rijksmuseum exhibit contains works from fourteen museums and private collections, including works never-before exhibited to the public.[6] Studying the exhibition as well as Vermeer’s oeuvre raises several legal questions including issues of copyright and authenticity.
Included in the exhibit was Vermeer’s arguably most famous work, Girl with the Pearl Earring.[7] At the end of March, the work returned to its home at the Mauritshuis Museum in The Hague, Netherlands.[8] However, in the masterpiece’s absence, the Mauritshuis launched an exhibition both online and in the museum titled My Girl with a Pearl. [9] Fans of Girl with a Pearl Earring have submitted their own takes on the masterpiece.[10] The fan submitted works were projected on the wall where the painting usually hangs, with 170 works on a loop, and some prints were hung physically in the gallery.[11]
Included among the works hanging at the museum is Julian van Dieken’s A Girl with Glowing Earrings.[12] Van Dieken is a “digital creator” who created A Girl with Glowing Earrings using the AI technology Midjourney and photoshop.[13] The museum’s choice to display the AI-created work has sparked considerable controversy within the art world.[14] People are critical of AI-generated artworks, as many artists believe that these works raise copyright issues.[15] To create these works using AI, many artists believe that the AI algorithms improperly employ copyrighted works to create these images.[16] Many in the art world believe, in addition to these copyright issues, using AI-generated art raises ethical questions as well.[17] Midjourney, the platform used to create A Girl with Glowing Earrings, as well as other AI platforms including Deviant and Stability AI, are currently involved in a class action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.[18] These AI platforms use algorithms that involve both human input and the algorithm’s input, creating questions of ownership.[19]. Countries vary in whether AI-generated works themselves are entitled to copyright protections, but typically to receive these protections, “substantial human involvement” is required. [20]Because of these ethical and legal questions, critics of the Mauritshuis’s decision to hang van Dieken’s work have been unsatisfied with the museum’s response to the controversy.[21]
In addition to Girl with a Pearl Earring, the Rijksmuseum exhibit also displays works with more dubious attributions, namely two works from the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. [22] Girl with the Red Hat and Girl with a Flute, both at the National Gallery of Art, portray the same sitter.[23] However, in October 2022, Girl with a Flute lost its attribution as a Vermeer work. [24] During COVID, while the works were not on view, the museum took the opportunity to study the layers of the painting.[25] Studying the layers of the painting revealed that Girl with a Flute likely was not actually created by Vermeer, but likely someone in the school of Vermeer.[26] However, some disagree with this decision to remove Girl with a Flute’s attribution as a work by Johannes Vermeer, believing that it still may have been partially painted by the artist.[27] Today, the work remains in the Rijksmuseum exhibit, with experts at the Rijksmuseum disagreeing with the National Gallery’s decision to remove the work’s attribution. [28] With so few works in Vermeer’s oeuvre, losing the attribution of even one painting makes a large impact. This is especially true as The Concert, a Vermeer painting that was exhibited at the Isabella Stewart Garden Museum in Boston, was stolen in 1990 in one of the most notorious art heists, and has not been seen since. [29] With so few works attributed to Vermeer, in April 2023, Vermeer fans found a new glimmer of hope in a painting, when a scholar claimed that the Philadelphia Museum of Art potentially has an unattributed Vermeer.[30]
With such acclaim and frenzy surrounding the Rijksmuseum exhibit, tickets naturally have been difficult to come by.[31] Tickets initially sold out quickly, after which the museum extended its hours and increased the number of tickets available, with the museum website even crashing due to site traffic.[32] Following such attention, the museum launched an online version of the exhibition titled “Closer to Johannes Vermeer.” [33] If Vermeer fans can’t make it to Amsterdam, the online version is worth a visit to get a sense of this phenomenal exhibit.
Footnotes
